Man who skipped court 23 years ago to avoid prison for molesting child is caught in Oregon

A man who fled from Fresno County after he was convicted of molesting a child more than two decades ago has been captured in Oregon, the Fresno County Sheriff's Office said.

Arturo Rangel, 55, was booked into Fresno County Jail on Friday after he was tracked down in Myrtle Point, a small town southeast of Coos Bay, Ore.

In 1993, Rangel was arrested on four counts of lewd acts with a child under 14, and one count of annoying or molesting a child under 18. He pleaded guilty to the charges, and was scheduled to receive seven years in prison. Before sentencing, then-Judge Gene Gomes allowed Rangel to be released from jail so he could attend to personal matters, warning him that he faced a stiffer sentence if he failed to show, the Sheriff's Office said.

Rangel never returned to court. Authorities believe he may have gone to Mexico for a time.

Earlier this year, however, the Sheriff's Office received a tip that Rangel was living in small town in southwestern Oregon. With the help of the U.S. Marshal Service, Rangel was arrested on Aug. 23.

Rangel had a previous sexual assault conviction in Oregon, in 1986, and was imprisoned until 1989. After his release,he moved to Fresno.

This story was originally published September 12, 2016 at 3:54 PM with the headline "Man who skipped court 23 years ago to avoid prison for molesting child is caught in Oregon."