Fugitive On Lam For 41 Years Had Pretty House In Portugal

It's believed this is George Wright's wife, Maria Do Rosario Valente, outside their house in Almocagema, Portugal (AP)

Earlier this week, the FBI crowed about capturing George Wright, who was convicted to killing a man during a NJ gas station robbery in 1962 and pleaded guilty, only to escape from prison in 1970, hijack a plane and demand a $1 million random before disappearing. Now, more details about his life before capture have been revealed, including the the fact that he was "known as 'Jorge the Painter,' a man who painted houses and did other odd jobs" in a small town 26 miles from Lisbon, Portugal and lived pretty openly.

A 2000 photograph of Wright (Noticias de Colares)

The NY Times reports, "He lived with his Portuguese wife and two grown children in a white-washed house with a yellow door and garden gate with a sign by the door naming it 'Casa das Escadas,' or 'House of the Stairs,'" A neighbor said, "This is a big surprise," who said he sometimes traded fish he caught for chicken from Wright.

Before moving to Portugal, though, Wright was in Africa: He lived in Guinea-Bissau, where he apparently lived openly and even knew U.S. Embassy officials there. Former ambassador John Blacken said, "All this was a big surprise, my goodness, murder and everything else No one imagined him being a murderer, of course we didn't know him that well. He seemed like an ordinary person and not radical at all."

The FBI traced Wright to Portugal when they ran his fingerprints in a database that had a fingerprint from Wright's Portuguese ID card. He's being held in Portugal until extradition; CBS News reports, "If a court grants his extradition to the U.S., Wright could appeal to Portugal's Supreme Court and then to the Constitutional Court, a process likely to last months." Still, his re-arrest relieved the daughter of the man killed in 1962: Amy Patterson told the Times it "felt like a burden had been lifted."

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By Jen Chung in News on September 29, 2011 6:40 PM

Comments [rss]

jimjones_koolaid

It seems to me that he is a reformed man, and has been a functioning member of society without causing a crime for the past 40 years. people change. We all have our regrets and make mistakes. Are there no statute of limitations? It sounds as if he has made more changes and progress to his life that I doubt would have happened in prison.

Having said that. Give anybody a million dollars and it would be interesting to see how their lives change for good or worse.

Nos Feratu

He killed a WWII vet who was just out doing his job. The way the "Greatest Generation" has been collectively sanctified, that won't be overlooked. Second, he hijacked a plane as an act of political defiance. With the hysteria of plane hijacking and terrorism still in full force, that won't be forgiven either. I say that it will be easy for the Feds to pressure a broke Portugal into giving him up.

Qwerkie

There is no statute of limitations on murder.

Investigate-NWO-globalists

I wonder which elements in our gov't helped him get away with this for 41 years???

me4

He got away with it. He got away with murder. There is no justice.

imadick

he had to flee the greatest country in the history of the universe. that's a form of punishment.

luke_1

Yes, he had to flee a place where you can't get a decent apartment for under 2000 dollars and breathe air that is probably worse for you than a pack of cigarettes to a place where he supported himself by sometimes roasting chickens, and trading them for fresh fish while living in a beautiful white house in a small seaside village. (plus he had free health care)

Ragingsemi

"... hijack a plane and demand a $1 million random..."

Typo police...pull it over!

mattbrownnyc

For a second, I thought "random" was the new cool way to say "cash," due to the randomness of the serial numbers of bills. Usage example: "I got mad random, yo."

Ragingsemi

Or get on the ground and gimme all yo random bitch!
Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

Think2wice

Glad he got caught, but you know this is going to a movie. Hollywood is already salivating.

For about a couple of minutes that story about Portugal made me want to ditch this city pronto.

JacksBack72

Portugal- where almost everyone smokes. . . and has bad teeth!
Geez- I just can't wait to go see the 'movie' about an escaped convict who eluded capture for 40+ years!

Every such person out there should constantly be looking over his/her shoulder. . . and listening for footsteps!