Man Who Fled During Trial on Rape Charges is Caught

By NBC News

Eric McGowan

September 11, 2012 Updated Sep 11, 2012 at 2:09 PM PDT

A man who fled his Texas rape trial in late August was back in custody on Tuesday, after reportedly being found on the toilet in a Houston-area apartment, authorities said.

Officials arrested 20-year-old Eric McGowen without incident, in an apartment complex in northeast Houston Tuesday. Officers told Houston's CBS-affiliate KHOU that he was arrested and handcuffed while sitting on the toilet. The U.S. Marshals Service says authorities were able to find McGowen with information provided to the Gulf Coast Violent Offenders Task Force.

McGowen had been charged in the repeated group sexual assault of an 11-year-old Texas girl. He fled his trial for this case on Aug. 29, the same day the now 13-year-old victim testified about the attacks in Cleveland, Texas, about 45 miles northeast of Houston.

Authorities had been looking for McGowen ever since.

There's more to this story from NBC News,to read about it CLICK HERE.

To submit a comment on this article, your email address is required. We respect your privacy and your email will not be visible to others nor will it be added to any email lists.