OKALOOSA COUNTY, Fla. – A former Okaloosa County man wanted by the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office for 15 years has been arrested in Massachusetts, the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office has announced.
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According to the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office (OCSO), Mark Burns, 70, a former Shalimar area tennis coach, is currently held in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, awaiting extradition.
The OCSO said Burns is wanted by the agency for alleged sexual activity with a minor and other charges. It said Burns has been on the run from the OCSO since 2007.
Burns was reportedly taken into custody on October 27 by the U.S. Marshals with the Massachusetts Fugitive Task Force after U.S. Marshals with the Florida Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force submitted a tip.
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He was allegedly found working in a deli with the 12 Tribes Cult in Plymouth, Massachusetts.
Burns is accused of having a sexual relationship with a 16-year-old girl between March 2006 and March 2007.
He allegedly admitted the relationship to the girl’s mother in March 2007, reportedly telling her he wanted to marry the girl. She immediately contacted law enforcement.
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When investigators with the OCSO went to Burns’ home on 7th Avenue on March 15, 2007, he was already gone and had been on the run since, the OCSO said.
Although his location remained unknown all that time, the OCSO said its efforts to find him did not stop.
