Scott Binsack will spend Thanksgiving behind bars, and most likely away from a keyboard.
The fugitive who taunted pursuers and critics through Facebook and YouTube was caught by surprise in Bath Twp., N.Y., by U.S. marshals and other authorities between 9 and 10 p.m. Tuesday at the Budget Inn.
To the end, Mr. Binsack continued mocking critics, seemingly unaware.
"Legal actions being filed and those corrupt ones (are) going down," according to a post, purporting to be Mr. Binsack on the "Clear Scott Binsack" Facebook page. "Understand this ... no one knows my whereabouts ... Stay tuned for the next post!!"
There was no next post. Mr. Binsack was taken into custody moments later.
"We caught him by surprise and he surrendered," said U.S. Marshal Martin J. Pane.
U.S. marshals assisted in the search and apprehension. The state Department of Probation and Parole is a charter member of the U.S. Fugitive Task Force. Mr. Binsack failed to appear for a meeting with parole officials Oct. 25 and was declared an absconder.
While Mr. Binsack is not classified a violent offender, Mr. Pane said any fugitive can be dangerous insofar as they are desperate.
After 26 days on the lam, Mr. Binsack was in the Steuben County Prison, and he is expected to be extradited to Pennsylvania. Within 10 days he will face a first-level hearing to determine if there is probable cause for a violation of the terms of his parole. In this case, his violations may include failing to show up for a meeting with a parole officer, engaging in financial transactions prohibited by the terms of his release and harassment.
Within 120 days of that hearing, he will have a second-level hearing to determine whether he violated parole and what the penalty will be, said Leo Dunn, a spokesman for the state Board of Probation and Parole. Mr. Binsack could go back to prison until May 18, 2014, plus any time he was on absconder status.
Mr. Binsack has always been an adopter of emerging technology. From prison, he ran a blog and a Twitter account titled "Illegally Searched and Seized" and even sold T-shirts and hats with logos. With new avenues of social networking and the ease of digital video, he launched a number of Facebook pages after his release from prison in April of 2011. He used those pages to explain his past and attack those who questioned him in his adopted town of Shamokin.
One Facebook post contained a truth. He did file a lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, stamped the day he was taken into custody. The lawsuit, filed by Berwick attorney Frank Kepner Jr., claims that officials from the city of Shamokin and state Department of Probation and Parole denied Mr. Binsack his constitutional rights.
Contact the writer: dfalchek@timesshamrock.com