Illinois man wanted in 2006 child sex crime is found living on MS Coast, marshals say

An Illinois fugitive’s time on the run for 15 years to escape a sex crime charge ended Tuesday morning in Ocean Springs, Jeremy Stillwell, supervisory agent of the U.S. Marshal’s Gulf Coast Regional Fugitive Force said in a release Tuesday.

Lawrence W. Baker, 52, was wanted in Lancaster, Illinois, on a charge of aggravated criminal sexual abuse of a child between the ages of 13 to 17. He had been on the run since 2006.

Marshals worked with Illinois authorities to track Baker down to a home on Braeburn Drive in Ocean Springs..

Baker is believed to have moved to Ocean Springs to avoid capture shortly after the crime occurred in 2006, the release said.

After his arrest, Baker was taken to the Harrison County jail, where he is being held pending extradition back to Illinois to face the charge there.

This story was originally published June 15, 2021 at 1:05 PM.

Margaret Baker

Sun Herald

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Margaret is an investigative reporter whose search for truth exposed corrupt sheriffs, a police chief and various jailers and led to the first prosecution of a federal hate crime for the murder of a transgendered person. She worked on the Sun Herald’s Pulitzer Prize-winning Hurricane Katrina team. When she pursues a big story, she is relentless.