By Joel Anderson, Times Staff Writer
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
BROOKSVILLE -- U.S. Marshals apprehended a 65-year-old Brooksville man wanted on five counts of sexual battery involving two teenage boys on Tuesday after he was deported from a south Pacific Island where he had fled to escape prosecution.
Authorities have been searching for Guy Osman Gould Jr. since he skipped an appearance in front of a Hernando County judge on Sept. 3.
They finally tracked Gould down after the government of Samoa deported him after being made aware of his criminal charges in Florida. Gould was arrested as he exited a flight in Los Angeles, according to a release from the Pacific Southwest Regional Fugitive Task Force of the U.S. Marshals.
Gould, 65, of 7014 Daffodil Drive is accused of engaging in sexual activities with a 15-year-old boy and a 14-year-old boy, Brooksville police said. According to police, the 15-year-old told his mother that he had sexual contact with Gould. The mother then went to the police, and an investigation began.
A search of Gould's house turned up evidence, police said, and Gould was arrested on Aug. 30. During an interview with police, Gould confessed to having sex with the teenage boys, police said.
The 14-year-old later told police he had sexual contact with Gould on four occasions. Police said the five incidents took place from August through January, police said.
The U.S. Marshals Service said after Gould posted bail from the county jail, he asked his lawyer to file a request for the removal of his ankle monitoring device temporarily for a medical procedure. That request was granted and the device was removed.
Neighbors told police they last saw Gould on Aug. 27 leaving the house with a small bag, getting into the passenger side of an older-model, blue car driven by a white male named Chris. Authorities initially suspected Gould may have sold all of his belongings and left the country from Miami.
Authorities said Gould left on Aug. 31 for Samoa and applied for a 30-day tourist Visa, which was later extended to 60 days. Gould, the Marshals Service said, "was aware of the fact that there was currently no extradition agreement between the United States and Samoa and tried to use that to his advantage."
The Samoan government served Gould with a deportation order and detained him until he could be placed on a direct flight to Los Angeles. He is awaiting extradition to Hernando County, according to authorities.
Joel Anderson can be reached at joelanderson@sptimes.com or (352) 754-6120.