Dayton Man Has Nowhere Else to Hide

Dayton, OH – Federal fugitive Lance Ealy knows the true meaning of the “long arm of the law.” Ealy, a 28 year-old man from Dayton, Ohio was indicted by a federal grand jury for 46 counts of fraudulent activity, including buying and selling stolen identities, access card devices, and filing false income tax returns. Ealy was on electronic monitoring during the course of his November 2014 trial but then days before the jury returned its verdict convicting him of the 46 counts, he cut the ankle monitor and went on the run. The Southern Ohio Fugitive Apprehension Strike Team (SOFAST) began the hunt and worked with agents from the U.S. Secret Service and Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Division. In order to stay on the run, Ealy would undoubtedly rely on his fraudulent ways.

The manhunt began on November 15, 2014 in Dayton, Ohio but came to abrupt end this morning in Atlanta, Georgia. After nearly 4 months of exhausted efforts and tracking Ealy through more than eight states, SOFAST developed information pointing to Atlanta. The U.S. Marshals in Atlanta reacted quickly to the request for assistance and deputies from the Northern District of Georgia, as well as members from the Atlanta based Southeast Regional Fugitive Task Force, located Ealy and gave him an early morning wake-up call. Ealy will remain in the Northern District of Georgia until he can be extradited back to Ohio.

SOFAST is a multi-jurisdictional task force comprised of the U.S. Marshals Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Ohio Adult Parole Authority, Dayton Police Department, Springfield Police Department, Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, Clark County Sheriff’s Office, Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, Miami County Sheriff’s Office, Wright State University Police, Greeneville Police Department, Grandview Hospital Police Department, Oakwood Police Department, Ohio State Highway Patrol, and the Springboro Police Department.

The U.S. Marshals Service is the nation’s primary fugitive hunting organization and captures more federal fugitives each year than all other law enforcement agencies combined.