Florida Fugitive Captured

Savannah, Georgia – A Florida man wanted by the Alachua County Sheriff’s Department in Gainsville, Florida was arrested by the United States Marshals Southeast Regional Fugitive Task Force and Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Department on August 19, 2011 in Savannah, Georgia.

Anthony M. Mathis, 19, was being sought on a warrant by the Alachua County Sheriff’s Department for Robbery.  Mathis was part of a crew of young men, who would see a person make a purchase and flash money in a store or other business, and they would follow the person from the business.  When outside they would beat the person down and steal their money.  The incident happened in June of 2011.  Other members of the crew have been arrested. 

The case was referred to the Gainsville Office of the U.S. Marshals Florida Regional Fugitive Task Force in July 2011.  The Florida Task Force conducted an extensive investigation over the last three and a half weeks to find Mathis.  Numerous leads were generated by the Florida Task Force.  The Florida Task Force received information that Mathis was possibly in the Savannah area and enlisted the aid of the Savannah Office of the U.S. Marshals Southeast Regional Fugitive Task Force.  The Task Forces generated a possible address on Savannah’s southside at the Windsor Crossing Apartments on White Bluff Road.  The Savannah Task Force and SCMPD Patrol units went to the address and found Mathis in apartment #405.  Mathis was arrested without incident and transported to the Chatham County Jail to await extradition proceedings to send him back to Florida.  Through the excellent coordination between the Marshals Task Forces and local law enforcement, a dangerous felon was taken off the street.

Annually, investigations carried out by the U.S. Marshals result in the apprehension of over 36, 000 federal fugitives.  More federal fugitives are arrested by the Marshals Service than all other federal agencies combined. 

The Marshals Southeast Regional Fugitive Task Force has three offices: Atlanta, Macon, and Savannah.  The task force covers the whole state of Georgia.  The Savannah Office of the Southeast Regional Fugitive Task Force is a team comprised of investigators from the Georgia Department of Corrections, the Chatham County Sheriff’s Department, the Savannah Chatham Metropolitan Police Department and the United States Marshals Service.  The task force objective is to seek out and arrest fugitives charged with violent crimes, drug crimes, sex offenders, and other felonies.  In 2010, U.S. Marshals led task forces arrested more than 81,000 state and local fugitives on felony charges.