“Manifesto fugitive” Joseph Jakubowski caught by police after manhunt
Joseph Jakubowski, the man accused of stealing firearms and sending a threatening manifesto to President Trump, was taken into custody on Friday, police said.
Rock County Sheriff Robert Spoden announced Jakubowski was captured in Readstown, Wisconsin, early Friday morning, bringing a 10-day manhunt to an end.
Spoden told CBS News Jakubowski was en route to the federal courthouse in Madison, Wisconsin, where he’ll face federal charges. Jakubowski will then be transported to Rock County jail where he’ll be booked and charged at the county level, Spoden said.
The sheriff’s office said police received reports of a suspicious man camping on a farm in Readstown around 9:30 p.m. Thursday. The description of the man matched Jakubowski and officers took him into custody without incident shortly before 6 a.m. Friday, police said.
Spoden said it appeared Jakubowski had been at the camp site for some time. He said Jakubowski surrendered peacefully and no one was injured in the arrest.
Jeffrey Gorn, who owned the property where Jakubowski was found, told the Associated Press he spotted a man camping while driving his four-wheeler. He didn’t realize the man was Jakubowski, and the two spoke for about an hour. Gorn said he didn’t feel threatened during the encounter, but said Jakubowski expressed anger with society in general.
Gorn called the sheriff’s office once he returned home.
A press conference is scheduled for 2 p.m. local time.
Jakubowski had been the subject of a nationwide manhunt since April 4, when police say he drove through the front window of a gun shop in Janesville, Wisconsin, and stole 18 weapons, including an automatic M-16 assault rifle. He also allegedly sent a 161-page manifesto to President Trump, in which he threatened “revolution” and violence against schools using the stolen weapons.
More than 150 law enforcement officers were involved in the manhunt, CBS affiliate WDJT-TV reports. Readstown is about 125 miles from Janesville, Jakubowski’s hometown.