Convicted NC sex offender caught in CA

RALEIGH (WTVD) -- Authorities caught a a convicted sex offender in California who disappeared from Raleigh two years ago.

They arrested 40-year-old Russell Szkolnyj in San Diego last week.

US Marshals apprehended him after receiving information from Raleigh authorities. After multiple interviews at a coffee shop in San Diego, authorities learned Szkolnyj was living in a van near the business.

Szkolnyj is being held in a San Diego jail until he is extradited to NC.

In July 2006, he pleaded guilty to indecent liberties with a child and was sentenced to 19-23 months.

His sentence was suspended for three years in exchange for supervised probation. A judge ordered Szkolnyj to complete the Sex Offender Control Program and to register with the Wake County Sheriff's Office as a convicted sex offender.

Authorities said he failed to register and fled the area in August 2007.

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