Fugitive felon is back behind bars in W. Pa.
MERCER — A fugitive with a lengthy criminal record that spans several counties including Butler is back behind bars.
Kevin L. McFadden, 47, is in the Mercer County Jail.
McFadden, who is a felon, was arrested last weekend in Ashtabula County, Ohio, and waived extradition Monday at a court hearing.
He was returned Wednesday to Western Pennsylvania where he faces several criminal cases in Mercer and Lawrence counties.
McFadden had been the target of an extensive manhunt since he recently absconded from state parole authorities.
The Mercer area man also was wanted on four arrest warrants for theft-related cases dating back to October.
McFadden on Wednesday was arraigned on felony charges in separate theft-related cases in Springfield, Liberty and Jefferson townships in Mercer County.
On Thursday, he was arraigned for a felony theft case in Brookville, Jefferson County.
The U.S. Marshal’s Fugitive Task Force joined state police and other law enforcement agencies in seeking McFadden, who over the years had earned a reputation for fleeing police and engaging officers in high-speed vehicle chases.
In a 2013 case, he led troopers on a pursuit in northern Butler County. He eventually got away after abandoning his car in a field a near Moniteau High School in Cherry Township.
During a 2012 chase in Lawrence County, he deliberately rammed a Pulaski Township police cruiser occupied by an officer.
State police in issuing an alert last week for McFadden said that he is suspected of stealing farm machinery and other power equipment in several northwest Pennsylvania counties.
Additionally, the advisory noted his ties to numerous locations in Mercer, Butler, Lawrence, Crawford, Venango and Clarion counties.
Court records showed that in Butler County, McFadden was convicted in 2014 of a misdemeanor count of receiving stolen property, and was sentenced in that case to serve 6 to 12 months in county prison.
