An Arizona fugitive who spent years avoiding U.S. authorities has been captured in France, ending his second international escape attempt tied to long-standing sex crime convictions.
French authorities arrested 51-year-old Michael Robert Wiseman on Nov. 1 in the northeastern town of Kilstett, where he had been living under an alias. Local investigators say he had passed through Vietnam and Poland before settling in France, and had adopted two children during his time abroad.
The breakthrough came when Wiseman applied for a pilot’s license in Spain using his real name. According to Scottsdale police, the prospective employer ran a basic online search, discovered his fugitive status, and alerted Spanish authorities — triggering a multi-country review that led to his arrest in France.
Wiseman had been on Scottsdale’s most-wanted list for more than a decade. His criminal history stems from a 2008 case in which investigators found child sexual abuse material on his computer. Before that case could be resolved, he cut off his ankle monitor and fled the country, eventually being arrested in Spain in 2009 and returned to Arizona. He later pleaded guilty to attempted sexual exploitation of a minor and an escape charge, spending more than two years in jail before receiving lifetime probation in 2012.
Not long after sentencing, prosecutors say he disappeared again — this time for more than a decade. His travel across several countries, acquisition of a Polish passport under another identity, and efforts to pursue aviation work suggest he was attempting to establish a long-term life abroad.
French authorities have now charged Wiseman with sexually assaulting a child, and he will remain in their custody until those proceedings conclude. Scottsdale police say he will be extradited to the United States afterward, though no timeline has been set.
More information on international extradition procedures can be found through the U.S. Marshals Service’s public guidance page.
