COLTON HARRIS-MOORE UPDATES

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Dateline Orcas Island, WA: Where in the world is Colton Harris-Moore?

Rumors last week of his capture by the Coast Guard were quickly deemed false (unless that was just a cover because they immediately renditioned Colt to Guantanamo... see if that false rumor gains traction).

There have, so far, been no other reports of break-ins or thefts on the island that fit Colt's m.o., leaving authorities -- and all of us residents -- to wonder if he did a hit and run on us. A mystery boat buzzed along the island at 1:45 a.m. last Thursday. Was it Colt making a quick getaway after leaving the taunting footprints? Or maybe just a Coast Guard patrol boat making a midnight sweep? We have increased water patrols because of the Olympics being held just north of us in Vancouver.

Down on Camano Island, where Colt was born and first became an outlaw, there continue to be sporadic break-ins. As I've reported in Outside Magazine and here, though, many if not all of them appear to be the work of other thiefs, with some possibly acting as Colt copycats. Naturally, though, since Colton Harris-Moore gets all the press, everyone first thinks of him whenever there is a residential or commercial burglary.

As for residents, it's not just burglaries, but every bump in the night that we have to wonder "Is it Colt?" It's not a nice way to live. I'm also getting a lot of feedback from residents on Orcas and Camano that they wish people would stop thinking of Colt as a "Robin Hood" who steals from the rich. Yes, there are rich people who live on these islands, but the majority of us are not, and instead vary from the poor conditions Colt grew up in, to typical middle classers struggling to make it in tough times.

So, from what we know now, whoever stole the plane and rode it to Orcas Island then robbed the Homegrown Market may still be on the loose here on the island, hiding out with a belly full of cheesecake, trying to figure out how to cook croissants over a camp fire. Or... he's hiding in one of our neighbor's houses. Or... he's back on the mainland.

Basically, we don't know much other than we're watching the woods.
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