Successful prison breaks make headlines for only a few hours or days before authorities restore order. The reality is that most fugitives have nowhere to go, as law enforcement can track down family, friends, and known associates. Additionally, most law-abiding citizens would rather remain free than shelter a fugitive. However, some individuals have managed to cheat the system and remain at large for years—some even for decades. Here are some of the most astonishing cases of prison escapees who evaded capture for the most prolonged periods.
Marie Welsh (Susan Lefevre) – 34 Years
Marie Welsh’s story gained international attention when she appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show to discuss her book, A Tale of Two Lives: The Susan Lefevre Fugitive Story. She was just 19 years old when she was arrested in 1974, alongside her boyfriend, for selling heroin to an undercover police officer. Sentenced to 10 to 20 years in prison for possession and conspiracy, she found herself in a nightmarish environment where inmates were regularly assaulted, and guards threatened to break her spirit.
After just one year behind bars, Lefevre coordinated with her grandfather, who helped her escape. She scaled the prison walls, jumped over barbed wire, and vanished. She moved to California using her middle name, Marie and a false surname, Day. To avoid detection, she worked only odd jobs, never staying in one place for long. Her luck ran out in 2008 when police received a tip, leading to her arrest. However, she was released on parole in 2009.
Bobby Love (Walter Miller) – 38 Years
In 2015, FBI agents knocked on the door of Cheryl and Bobby Love’s New York apartment, arresting Bobby in front of his shocked wife. It was then revealed that Bobby Love was actually Walter Miller, a fugitive who had escaped a North Carolina prison in 1977.
Miller had been serving a 25- to 30-year sentence for bank robbery but was moved to a minimum-security facility due to good behaviour. Seizing the opportunity, he escaped and started a new life in New York, marrying Cheryl and raising four children—all of whom had no idea of his past. He had successfully evaded capture for nearly 40 years before authorities finally caught up with him.
Judy Lynn Hayman – 37 Years
Hayman was serving a 16-month sentence for attempted larceny in Michigan when she decided prison wasn’t for her. She escaped in 1977 and managed to stay under the radar for nearly 40 years.
It remains unclear how she evaded the FBI for so long, but she was eventually found in San Diego, California, under the name Jamie Lewis. She even had legal documentation supporting her false identity. When she was arrested, her 32-year-old son was stunned to learn that his mother had been a fugitive for decades.
Frank Freshwaters – 56 Years
Dubbed the “Shawshank Fugitive,” Freshwaters’ escape became legendary. He had been incarcerated at the Ohio State Reformatory, where The Shawshank Redemption was filmed.
Sentenced initially for manslaughter, he was transferred to a lower-security facility in 1959, where he escaped. He remained on the run for 56 years, living under the alias William Cox in Brevard County, Florida. In 2015, U.S. Marshals finally tracked him down and extradited him back to Ohio. Due to his old age and declining health, a parole board approved his release in 2016.
Linda Darby – 35 Years
Darby’s story was featured in Sir Trevor McDonald’s documentary on female prisoners in Indiana. Convicted of murdering her second husband, she was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1972. Just a few years later, she escaped by scaling a barbed-wire fence.
To avoid detection, she changed her surname to McElroy and altered her Social Security number by just one digit. She lived quietly in Pulaski, Tennessee, raising two children and later becoming a grandmother. She was eventually caught in 2016 when a local sheriff, who had unknowingly befriended her, assisted in her arrest. Her family was stunned to learn of her criminal past.
Emmett Bass – 27 Years
Bass was sentenced to 15 years for robbing a package store in Georgia in 1975. Three years into his sentence, he simply walked away while on a work detail. Sleeping in barns and avoiding capture, he stayed on the run for 27 years. When he was finally arrested, he admitted he was just glad to have gotten away for as long as he had.
Robert Stackowitz – 48 Years
Stackowitz’s escape serves as a cautionary tale for fugitives. He fled a Georgia prison in 1968 while serving a 17-year sentence for aggravated robbery. He then moved to Connecticut, living under the name Bob Gordon.
For decades, he lived a quiet life, but his past caught up with him in 2016 when he applied for Social Security benefits. Instead of a pension, he got a visit from the authorities. Due to severe illness, he was deemed unfit for extradition and died a few weeks later under supervised release.
Darko Desic – 30 Years
The COVID-19 pandemic forced many into difficult financial situations—including fugitives. Desic had escaped from a New South Wales prison in 1992 using a hacksaw to cut through his cell window and bolt cutters to open the prison gate.
Three decades later, struggling financially due to the pandemic, he decided prison was preferable to homelessness. In 2021, he turned himself in and resumed serving the remainder of his sentence.
Lester Eubanks – Nearly 50 Years (Still at Large)
One of the most mysterious fugitive cases, Eubanks was convicted of murder and attempted rape in 1965. Initially sentenced to death, his sentence was commuted to life without parole when the death penalty was abolished in 1972.
In 1973, he was transferred to a minimum-security facility for good behaviour and permitted to go Christmas shopping. Instead, he disappeared and has remained at large ever since. In 2019, the U.S. Marshals placed him on their most-wanted list, offering a $25,000 reward for information leading to his capture.
Clarence David Moore – 30 Years
Moore was serving a seven-year sentence in North Carolina for larceny when he first escaped in 1971. Recaptured, he escaped again in 1975 from a Texas detention centre. He remained at large until 2015 when tired of constantly looking over his shoulder, he turned himself into authorities in Kentucky, stating that he wanted to “get it all behind him.”
These stories prove that while some escapees manage to evade capture for years, freedom always comes at a cost. Whether it’s constantly living in fear, assuming a false identity, or ultimately choosing to return to prison, the life of a fugitive is rarely glamorous.
Do you remember hearing about any of these cases? Share your thoughts in the comments below!