Killer Stories with Harvey Guillén - Barefoot Bandit: The Teen Felon Who Became a Folk Hero

Episode Date: August 3, 2026

A teenage runaway becomes a folk hero and a nationwide fugitive as he steals planes, boats, and cars—often barefoot—turning a two-year crime spree into one of the most unlikely manhunts in modern American history. Sources for this episode include:Reporting by The Daily Herald (Everett, Washington)"Barefoot Bandit: His Life and Crimes" (CBS News) Keep up with Killer Stories! Instagram: @killerstoriespodTikTok: @killerstoriespodX: @killerstorieshq Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Don't go. Are you sitting at work right now like I am? Do you ever just want to walk away, fly somewhere beautiful and warm, where every day feels like a vacation? Somewhere like, I don't know, the Bahamas? Well, that's where today's story ends up, but it begins on a very different island in Washington State. Yes, there are islands in Washington.

I looked it up. But to get to the Bahamas, today's culprit doesn't leave behind a bloody trail of bodies. He leaves behind footprints and cars and boats and planes. What I'm saying is that there's no death in this episode. There's no blood, okay? This show is sometimes a single entendre, but there is a lot of mayhem. So buckle up and secure the train in front of you and make sure your things are safely stored because we're about to take off.

I'm Harvey Guillen, and this is Killer Stories. Everyone knows Robin Hood, right? He steals from the rich and gives to the poor. Disney portrayed him as a strangely really hot fox. I mean, you can say what you want, but look it up. He's like the number one reason that people become furries. I'm not a furry, you know, per se. I don't judge anyone who is, but look it up.

He's just a hot fox. Anyway, this story isn't about a Robin. figure exactly, but it does center around a thief who achieves a similar status. Someone who's seen as such an underdog that he becomes a folk hero and divides public opinion almost down the middle. To some, he's a wanted fugitive, wreaking havoc on innocent people. To others, he's a rebel without a cause you just can't help but root for. I'm going to tell you the story, the way it played out in the media as it was happening. Okay, you can decide what camp you fall into afterwards.

Deal? Got it. So the story starts out on Camino Island, which is attached to the mainland, Washington, by a little road. The island is not very big, and there are like two state parks in it, plus lots of wilderness. Back in the 2000s, it was only home to about 15,000 people,

which gives it a real small community feel. It's the kind of place where people don't even think twice before leaving their doors unlocked, But in the winter of 2006, the island experiences a string of burglaries that completely changed the mood around town. Suddenly, people start deadbolting their homes, buying security systems, and carrying guns. The culprit hits businesses and homes stealing mostly cash, food, and clothing. Sometimes, though, they'll break in and just use the bathroom or take a shower, which is pretty strange. But what's even stranger is that February police announced their main suspect is a 15-year-old kid.

His name is Colton Harris Moore, and he's lived on the island since he was born in a trailer with his mom, Pam. So a lot of people know who he is. They've watched and grow up, and the general sentiment is most people don't want to believe he's responsible for the break-ins. neighbors say Colton has had a really tough childhood, sure. He could benefit from a little guidance, but deep down inside, he's a really good kid. This isn't Colton's first run-in with the law or even second. This one time, when he was 12, he stole from his middle school and got caught.

He couldn't explain why he did what he did, but at that time he apparently told his principal he couldn't stop stealing. like it was some kind of compulsion. Like that's, that's, you got to admit, that's an odd thing to say as a 12-year-old to an adult, right, admitting that. But maybe those adults should have taken his confession a little more seriously because now officials are having a really hard time tracking him down. And it's not their first time struggling to catch Colton.

Just last year, they had to set up an elaborate ruse involving an officer going undercover as a pizza delivery guy in order to arrest him for another charge. This time around, they're having to work even harder to find him. They think he might be crashing on friends' couches at night and squatting and empty vacation homes and are sleeping in the woods. In other words, they have no idea where he might be. But they do know he's very familiar with the trails in the area. He started running away to the woods at a very young age and staying out there for days and days at a time.

And the trails connect many of the roads on the island. So the assumption is that's probably how he's getting around. And the way I see it, Colton's knowledge of the woods, well, that just gives him advantage. That's almost a superpower. Officers occasionally get close enough to see Colton, but he always takes off. running into the woods, into the trees, they immediately lose him. And based on the sheriff's department's comments, it's clear they're really frustrated. I mean, I'm sure I would be too. Can you imagine being a trained law enforcement officer and having to report to your boss every day like,

but in my defense, he's really quick. And the sheriff's department actually makes those kinds of comments to the media. They make a big deal about how fast Colton is. And as a way to maybe skirt by how embarrassing the situation seems, they always make sure to call Colton a convicted felon or a fugitive and paint him as potentially dangerous. They even go as far as to say he might be armed with a gun without citing any evidence. The only thing I could find, that comes close is a no Colton left for his mom while on the run. Here's what it said verbatim. Mom, cops are here.

Everyone's on lockdown. P.S. Cops want to play, huh? Well, it's not a little game. It's war. Thank you. That was my impression of Colton. Now, I'm not trying to defend Colton,

but if a 15-year-old boy talking about war like it's a game of cat and mouse means he's potentially armed in dangers, and we've got a lot more problems than just one kid. Honestly, people are already rightfully worried about having their home broken into. Now they're worried that someone could get really hurt. Or worse. After months of this burglary spree, panic and frustration bills around the island to the point where the sheriff's department holds a community meeting,

they tell people to be careful and stay vigilant. And they basically beg everyone for their help and finding Colton. It's the old, if you see something, say something. And within a matter of days, someone see something. Just after 8 p.m. on Friday, February 9th, a neighbor notices a light on in a house that they know is supposed to be empty. They call 911, and 10 deputies rush to the scene and immediately surround the house. They don't want to risk another escape.

They can clearly see Colton inside the home because he's wearing a headlamp. He can see the officers outside too. Realizing he's surrounded, Colton picks up the phone and places a call to his mom. Colton tells his mom to ask for the officer who went undercover as the pizza delivery guy. I think maybe because he kind of admired him for doing that. Officers pick up Pam and drive her to the scene. After about 45 minutes, she convinces Colton to come outside and turn himself in. He's unarmed, except for a can of bare-strength pepper spray, which is not considered a weapon in Washington.

And as he sits in the back of a squad car, handcuffed, he has this bizarrely normal conversation with his mom. Pam tells him he needs to come home and open his Christmas presents that are still waiting for him. And Colton asks how his dog Melanie is doing. As Pam later tells the press, Colton really loves Melanie. Eventually, he's brought down to the station and held on a pretty steep bail. But I guess it's only fair, you know, I mean, clearly he's a flight risk. officials had spent the past six months trying to catch him, often asking officers to put in overtime. At trial, Colton faces 23 felony charges for burglaries and thefts.

He'd stolen more than just necessities. He took computers, cell phones, jewelry, and expensive toys. He also made purchases online with credit card information he took from homes, but in the end, Colton gets off relatively easy. He can't be charged as an adult because none of his crimes were violent. And his lawyer is able to negotiate a plea deal, three years in a juvenile facility and exchange for pleading guilty to just three burglary charges. Officials must breathe a sigh of relief, right?

Colton is shipped off to a maximum security lockup and the headache is finally over. They don't have to deal with this guy for at least another three years, or so they think. A little over a year passes before they find out, Colton escaped. About a year into his three-year sentence, Colton gets transferred from a maximum security facility to a halfway house in Washington.

He had apparently displayed exemplary behavior up until, that point, but it quickly seems like his good behavior was all a show to get to a less secure facility because after just a few weeks he escapes. He just climbs out a window. No one even realizes he's gone until they do a bet check that night at around 9.30 and he presumably got a decent head start because by the time authorities go looking for him, he's nowhere to be seen. Um, guys, can I get a running count on the screen, please? Thank you. Okay, that'll keep track of the number of days Colton's been on the run.

He's 17 when he escapes. Ready? Because the hijinks are just beginning. One month passes before officials reach out to the media. They haven't seen any sign of Colton, so authorities release new photos of him. He's a growing boy, so he's now five inches taller than the last time he's made news. He's six, five, really thin, and they think around 200 pounds.

Two months in, there are reports of burglaries all over the southern part of Camano Island. Everyone assumes it's Colton, but still no one has seen him. Even though the sheriff's department increases the number of officers on patrol just to look for him. And you know, they're pissed off about this, right? The kid has already wasted so much of their time, and now they have, to go and search for him again? Three months in. Officials get their first big break.

An expensive luxury car is spotted driving erratically on the island, specifically a black Mercedes that was reported stolen. Police catch up to the car and they're about to close in on the suspect when the person jumps out of the car while it's still moving and runs off into the woods. Their suspicions are quickly confirmed. It was definitely Colton. They find a bunch of stolen items inside the car, including a credit card scanner and a digital camera,

and they flip through the pictures. They see Colton's smiling face looking back at them. He had taken a bunch of selfies while on the run, and you can see from the pictures he's mostly in the woods. In one, he's lying on his back with wired Apple headphones in, wearing a black polo with the white Mercedes-Benz logo. And that eventually gets featured as his wanted poster. Meanwhile, the burglary count in the area hits 41.

After four months. Officials notice a pretty big drop in the number of break-ins on the island, so everyone's like, Golden must be gone. They asked his mom, Pam, and she's like, I've heard from him, sure, but I don't know where the hell he is. He hasn't told me, but officials are right. Colton has left. And the next place, we know he ends up, is on Orca's Island, a popular vacation spot that's only accessible by boat. And this is where things really escalate. On the island, he finds a piece of property

owned by a local radio personality that has a hanger. A hangar is a building meant to house planes, or other or other aircraft. And, mm-hmm, yep. Yes, I know what you're thinking. He does. He does. This 17-year-old kid steals a plane. Which is a fun fact, stealing a plane is legally considered piracy. So add pirate to Colton's resume, and he doesn't just steal the plane and drives off with it.

No, he takes off. He flies it over the mountain range through heavy winds and wide-out conditions, and crash lands it 250 miles away at the Yakima Indian Reservation in central Washington. And minus the vomit officials finding the cockpit, he walks away totally unscathed. It's nothing short of a miracle.

Can you imagine? I guess the question is, why is Colton stealing planes? No, but it's not like he desperately needs to escape or be somewhere. I mean, officials aren't hot on his trail or anything. They're not the quickest on their feet. In fact, just the opposite.

Eight months in, the sheriff's department on Camino Island is still scratching their heads. Like, yeah, he's probably gone, right? They don't realize how far things have actually escalated until much later. And I understand why. Even if you hear about a plane that crashes into a town miles and miles away, my mind probably wouldn't have jump to Colton either. Yes, he's stolen a car, but stealing a car and stealing a plane are two entirely different things, I imagine. Now, I can't say when officials put all the pieces together, but it takes almost nine more months before the public learns Colton might be stealing

planes. No one really knows how Colton spends that time, but he isn't just stealing planes. He's stealing boats too. He's taken at least two. The news coincides with the spike in burglaries across San Juan Island and in Point Roberts, Washington. Thieve hits cafes, restaurants, banks, hardware stores, and markets. They mostly take necessities like money, blankets, food, and shoes. They also steal credit card information, but leave the actual cards behind. So, all signs point to Colton. But Colton's mom, Pam, has doubts. Up until this point, she's basically been like,

I don't know where Colton is. Your guest is as good as mine. He doesn't tell me anything when he calls. And she's expressed frustration about how authorities seem to blame every break-in on her son. After the plane stuff comes out, she's like, oh, so now the idiots think my son can fly? She tells reporters Colton has

never taken a flying lesson in his life. The closest he's been to a plane is when he went to a museum and she's not the only one without real pilots back her opinion up. They say it's incredibly unlikely anyone could learn how to fly a plane from reading a flight manual. And watching some videos online. If Colton is responsible, they believe he must have had someone with aviation with him. Except, I'll spoil it for you right now. No, he did not. He just read the flight manual and watched some internet videos. That and he found some flight simulator thing online. He had no experience before he took that flight. He just winged it. And with those hours under his belt, he does it again. One month later, another story.

stolen plane crash lands in Washington in a field somewhere near town called Granite Falls. It was taken from an airport near Bonner's Ferry, Idaho, meaning this time the culprit flew almost 400 miles. And to get to the airport in Idaho, officials believe the person first crossed the border into Canada and then left a trail of stolen cars in their wake. So the grand theft auto hijacking and piracy counts are ruled. really wrecking up. And despite what the professional pilots say, officials seriously think the suspect could be Colton.

Mostly because they don't know who else it could be. And Pam's reaction to that is priceless. She's like, what? Now every plane that's stolen is Colton's too? But even she adds, if it is Colton, you know, I wish she wear a parachute. And the evidence that it is Colton is piling up. Right after the plane crashes in Granite Falls, there's a burglary in town, and the thief steals blankets, food, and shoes.

This is the point where the story takes on a whole new life. Newspapers all over the country begin covering the case, and Colton starts to develop quite the reputation. He becomes something of a celebrity, which, as you can imagine, doesn't go over well with law enforcement, especially because they're worried. Colton may be armed, for real this time. At that burglary in Granite Falls, the culprit shot at a deputy sheriff. So, officials pull out all stops. A black hawk helicopter, armored reinforcements, tracking dogs the whole nine yards. but nothing works.

Meanwhile, Facebook fan pages pop up. People start selling Colton T-shirts. Someone even makes a YouTube channel that discuss updates in the case. And because bare footprints have been found outside many of the break-ins, they call it the Ballad of Barefoot Harris. As Colton approaches two years on the run,

he steals what officials believe could be his fourth plane. This one's worth $600. $150,000. And he takes it from a town in Washington called Anna Cortes back on Orca's Island. And if this story couldn't get any crazier, officials only notice the plane before it crash lands

because Colton flies it through a federal no-fly zone that is set up for the 2010 Winter Olympics. By that time, they find the plane stuck in the mud. Though Colton is gone, meanwhile, somewhere else on the island, a separate group of officers are called to respond to a burglary at a local grocery store. Someone stole $1,200 cash. And they know for sure it was Colton because he left them a present.

A bunch of cartoon footprints that he drew in chalk outside the store. At the end of the trail, there's a message for the officers. It just says the letter C-Y-A, See ya. Okay, so it's been one year and 10 months since Colton escaped from that halfway house. And he's now 18 years old and has crashed landed a plane on an island off the coast of Washington during the Winter Olympics, which are happening across the border in Vancouver. And to make matters worse, Orca's Island starts experiencing another wave of break-ins and burglaries.

And local officials are, once again, at a loss. Colton apparently hits one grocery store a bunch of times, and one of those times he just takes a blueberry cheesecake and a tray of unbaked ham and cheese croissants. Officials are obviously super pissed that they still haven't caught this teenager, but hey, remember, he's really fast. That and according to them, they have a manpower problem. Colton is operating across a bunch of different jurisdictions, most of which have really small forces and, limited resources. A case this sprawling would best be handled by the FBI, but the crimes, they aren't serious enough for them to get involved. So a bunch of local departments band together and form a specialized task force to try and catch

him. One month later, someone finds bare footprints in the mud outside their home. Authorities launch another massive manhunt in the area, but they still don't catch Colton. That's a tough pill to swallow because Colton doesn't leave the area. In fact, he apparently returns to the exact same house while officials are conducting their giant operation and steals some food. The owner later finds more footprints outside her chicken coop the next morning and all the eggs are gone. literally under your nose. He's literally under your nose.

At the two-year mark before anyone even knows the ending, a book about Colton's crimes is already being written and considered for a Hollywood film. A month later, Colton is caught on camera stealing a boat from a marina. A month after that, Colton leaves a note outside an animal hospital in Raymond Washington. Along with $100 in small bills, the node reads for the care of animals, and is signed Colton Harris Moore, aka the Barefoot Bandit.

And I mean, I don't condone any crimes, really, I don't. But you have to admit that's kind of iconic. One day after the note is found, a very expensive fishing boat is stolen a few miles south of Raymond. And that takes us to the grand finale. In early July 2010, while an entire task force of local officers are looking for Colton in the Pacific Northwest, a plane crash lands in the shallow waters off an island. Pause for dramatic effect. In the Bahamas, officials later learned he stole the plane, believed to be his fifth from Bloomington, Indiana,

and flew it over 1,000 miles to the Bahamas, and from there he saw him. steals a yacht and flees to a different island, and that's where things catch up to him. On July 11th, police locate Colton trying to get away in another stolen boat, but they managed to shoot out the engine and catch up to him. He's found in possession of a firearm. He's arrested and taken shackles to a jail before being flown back to the states to await trial for his crime. He's still barefoot in his arrest photos. Now that's the story that made a splash, and it's obvious why, against all odds,

a teenager is able to outrun authorities for more than two years while stealing cars and boats, yachts, planes, and unbaked ham and cheese croissants. It is incredible, but there are added layers of complexity to the case that didn't really reach the public in the same way. Even before his first case goes to trial, records submitted to the court reveal a lot, like what Colton's childhood was actually like. There are the stories about how Colton loved airplanes. They were basically all he could talk about growing up. He loved

to draw them to tell people he wanted to be a pilot. Then there are the darker aspects of Colton's childhood. He grew up with very little in a run-down trailer with a sign that said, if you go past this sign, you will be shot. His birth father left when he was just four or five years old. Then Colton grew close to his mom's next husband, but he used heroin and died before Colton was 10. At some point, Colton's birth father came back into his life only to Cho Colton at a family barbecue when he was 12. Colton called the cops on his father and ran off into the woods. His father was never heard from again. According to court records, Colton's mom blamed him for driving his father away. By the time Colton was 14, Child Protective Services had been called

on his house 14 times. Neighbors worried Colton suffered from abuse or neglect. He was once removed from his mother's care for three days. But according to Colton's aunt, Pam never physically abused her son. That said, she struggled with alcohol use and could be mean when she was drinking. Colton once told a psychologist that she would yell and scream at him. She would also break his toys as a form of punishment. Colton's aunt believes he was let down by his family, his schools, and law enforcement. He never got the care or attention he needed.

And all of that could shed some light on Colton's behavior when he was on the run. He apparently started living in the woods for days at a time when he was just seven years old. And one of his former lawyers believed he stole planes because he saw it as his only chance to fly. He was incredibly bright, but he knew he'd never get into the Navy with his schooling and passed. And psych records show Colton struggled with mental health from a very young age. He'd been prescribed many different medications over his short life, including stimulants, antidepressants, mood stabilizers, and antipsychotic medication. When officers finally tracked him down in the Bahamas,

Colton put a gun to his head and threatened to end his life. The police thankfully talked him out of it. When his first case goes to trial in December 2011, Colton pleads guilty to seven burglary and theft charges, including the theft of several planes and boats. Between the stolen goods and damages alone, his crimes cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, and that's before all the resources that were poured into finding him. Colton is sentenced to more than seven years in prison. He says he's sorry for what he did and plans.

plans to spend his time incarcerated, studying so he can one day become an aeronautical engineer. He receives a separate federal sentence of six and a half years and all told he's instructed to pay $129,000 in restitution to his victims. In July 2016, he's released on probation to a halfway house. He gets a job doing clerical work at a defense law firm and And at some point, he tries to use social media to raise money so he can go to flight school. But his parole officer shuts that down. The money he raises, the officer says, must go towards the debt he owes his victims.

In response, Colton says, I feel like my dream has been crushed. But I think it's fair. You know, I feel for everything Colton went through as a kid, but an explanation is not an excuse. Colton did was wrong. His crimes weren't violent that we know of, but they also weren't victimless. He suspected of committing more than 80 burglaries he stole from many, many innocent people and his crimes had serious effects on their lives. They deserve justice for what happened to them. That's true. And it can also be true that part of me would be kind of sad if Colton never gets the chance to fly again, to really fly properly and aboveboard.

Whether he can or not and whether he will or not, I don't know. But reports suggest he's no longer under mandated supervision. Thanks for tuning into Killer Stories, a Spotify podcast. New episodes release on Mondays. If you like today's story and want to learn more, we drop some of our favorite sources in the episode description. Until next time, I'm Harvey Heehan. Stay safe out there.