FBI: Convicted child molester found in Arizona after months on the run
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - Officials with the FBI say a man who was wanted in California following a conviction for child sex crimes-related offenses has been found in Arizona.
What we know:
Per a statement released on June 12, Carl W. Cacconie was arrested without incident by a fugitive task force that involved multiple agencies, including deputies with the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office and U.S. Border Patrol agents.
The backstory:
According to the FBI, a jury in California's El Dorado County convicted Cacconie in July 2025 of six counts of committing lewd acts upon a child under the age of 14.
Per a report by Sacramento area television station KCRA, the victim was 11 years old when the crimes happened, but they are now an adult. While the television station interviewed the victim, they did not release the victim's identity.
Cacconie, per the statement, was originally set to be sentenced on August 25.
"A request by an El Dorado County Deputy District Attorney to remand Cacconie into custody while awaiting his sentencing was denied. Instead Cacconie remained out of custody on $1,000,000 bail after previously surrendering his passport and being fitted with a monitoring device," read a portion of the statement. "On August 17, 2025, the monitoring device stopped transmitting. Cacconie was last seen in San Francisco, California on August 22, 2025."
Officials said on the original day of his sentencing, Cacconie's family told the court that they had reported him missing, and that Cacconie "left
behind his phone, wallet and a suicide note."
The FBI said a federal arrest warrant was issued for Cacconie on May 14, 2026.
Dig deeper:
During a court appearance in Phoenix, a prosecutor with the Maricopa County Attorney's Office said when Cacconie allegedly fled, he "attempted to convince law enforcement that he had faked his own death so that they would not try to find him."
"Our understanding at this point is that he has been living under an alias here in Scottsdale since at least January of 2026," an attorney with the Maricopa County Attorney's Office said in court.
What they're saying:
"Carl Cacconie underestimated law enforcement and our commitment to ensuring justice for those impacted by his crimes," said FBI Sacramento Acting Special Agent in Charge Brian Tosh, in the statement. "Our task force officer with the El Dorado County District Attorney’s Office relentlessly pursued leads and worked closely with FBI Sacramento, FBI San Francisco, and FBI Phoenix field offices to ensure every possible tool, technique, and resource, was leveraged to locate and safely apprehend this convicted criminal."
What's next:
Per the FBI, Cacconie will be extradited back to California.
The Source: Information for this article was gathered from a statement released by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with supplemental information gathered from an article published by Sacramento, Calif. television station KCRA.