1/14/09 – Tony Alamo Knowingly Harbors, Jon Curry, a Sex Offender on Alamo Property
Texarkana Gazette
January 14, 2009
By: Lynn LaRowe
Police arrest sex offender
Man accused of violating federal law
A convicted sex offender was arrested Tuesday on Tony Alamo Christian Ministries property in Fort Smith, Ark., for violating a federal sex offender registration law.
If convicted, Jonathon Patrick Curry could be assessed a fine of up to $250,000 and 10 years in federal prison.
Curry was convicted in 2002 of attempted lewdness with a minor involving a child below the age of 14 by a judge in Clark County, Nev., according to a federal arrest affidavit. Clark County includes Las Vegas.
Nevada probation and parole officials declined to release the age or gender of Curry’s victim Wednesday.
Curry, 49, was to be supervised for life upon his release on Nov. 20, 2007, and was required to register as a sex offender. However, he failed to register with authorities in Nevada or in Arkansas, according to federal court documents.
The state of Nevada issued a warrant June 10, 2008, for Curry’s arrest for violating his lifetime supervision agreement.
On Nov. 17, Curry told an FBI special agent he lived in a warehouse in Fort Smith.
A federal arrest affidavit notes the sign on Curry’s bedroom door reads, “Keep Out Jon Curry’s Rm.”
Although the address of the warehouse is redacted from federal court documents, officials with the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Western District of Arkansas’ Fort Smith division confirmed Curry was living on Alamo Ministries property.
Last week Curry was observed standing in the parking lot of the Fort Smith warehouse, the affidavit said. Monday, federal authorities searched sex offender registry records and found no evidence Curry had ever tried to register in Arkansas.
He was arrested the following day.
Wednesday afternoon, Curry appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge James Marschewski in Fort Smith. With the help of federal public defender Bruce Eddy, Curry waived his right to preliminary and detention hearings.
During a preliminary hearing, defendants can challenge the issue of identity. Whether a defendant should be allowed to remain free while the case proceeds to trial is addressed at a detention hearing. Factors considered include risk of flight and public safety.
Curry is being held for federal marshals in the Sebastian County jail. Jail officials said the unregistered sex offender was brought in by an FBI agent.
Curry is now the third person in recent months with ties to Alamo Ministries to face felony charges.
Fugitive John Kolbek, 49, is accused of beating children and adults with a handcrafted wooden paddle. A warrant for second-degree battery is active for his arrest in Sebastian County and federal authorities have issued a warrant for unlawful flight from prosecution.
Tony Alamo, whose real name is Bernard LaZar Hoffman, is facing a 10-count federal indictment for allegedly bringing young girls across state lines for sex. Alamo, 74, is being held in a jail in downtown Texarkana.