Department of State Recaptures Fugitive Child Molester

The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security and the U.S. Marshals Service returned a fugitive child molester from Cambodia to face justice in the United States on Thursday, March 25. Richard Vincent Lando was convicted in Virginia in 1994 on five felony counts of aggravated sexual battery and taking indecent liberties with minors. Lando is now charged with violating his parole by traveling to Cambodia.

This was the second time Lando fled the country to avoid punishment for his crimes. When Lando was first charged with the five felony counts in 1989, he was released on a $10,000 bond but left the country before appearing in court. Lando was located in Thailand and deported to the United States in 1994. He served time in prison, was released on probation in 1998 and again fled the country, this time to Cambodia.

Lando’s victims in the original case were 9, 11 and 12 years old. When police first arrested Lando in 1989, they found an eight-foot toy rabbit that Lando used to entice young girls. Police also found handguns in his house, including one gun with a silencer.

The Bureau of Diplomatic Security recently tracked down Lando again after the Virginia Beach, Virginia Police Department and the U.S. Marshals Service determined that he might be in Cambodia. Acting on the new lead, Diplomatic Security’s special agent in Cambodia contacted the Cambodian national police, who arrested Lando on Cambodian immigration violations on March 12. We are pleased with the cooperation of the Government of Cambodia in this case.

In 2003, the Bureau of Diplomatic Security and the U.S. Marshals Service worked together to return 70 U.S. fugitives from overseas.

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