Canadian Cops on Bicycles Nab One of America’s Most Wanted Fugitives

A pair of bike riding cops in Canada arrested an “armed and dangerous” Laotian man on August 23, who was on the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement list of 10 most wanted fugitives.

According to authorities, 35-year-old alleged drug lord Katay-Khaophone Sychantha has been evading arrest since 2005 following an indictment in the Eastern District of Michigan for conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance.

The suspected ringleader of a drug-smuggling group was caught by Montreal police after an encounter on a bike path patrol in the area of Saint-Laurent, according to CBC News. The officers caught the suspect and another man after a brief chase as Sychantha reportedly tried to flee on foot.

Upon his arrest, Sychantha gave fake U.S. identification, but his fingerprints at the police station soon revealed his true identity. His most-wanted poster, which indicated that his last known location was Lakeshore, Canada, has now been updated to list him as arrested.

The wanted poster also noted that: “In 2013, Sychantha’s continued illicit activity led to a second indictment in the Eastern District of Michigan for Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance.”

Sychantha’s alleged drug-smuggling operations reportedly pumped millions of ecstasy pills and hundreds of pounds of marijuana into multiple states across the U.S., including New York, Michigan, Ohio, Illinois, Massachusetts, and Georgia.

He was charged with drug possession, obstructing the work of a police officer and using a forged document on Thursday at a court in Montreal. Sychantha is now being held by Ontario Provincial Police, with a possible extradition to the U.S.

Feature Image via Wikimedia Commons / Thivierr (CC-BY-SA-3.0) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

Share this Article