Carl Cacconie located in Arizona after 10 months on the run, extensive multi-agency search; sentencing pending in El Dorado County child molestation case
A convicted child molester who disappeared before his scheduled sentencing in El Dorado County has been captured after nearly 10 months as a fugitive, according to the El Dorado County District Attorney’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Authorities announced Friday that Carl W. Cacconie was apprehended in Scottsdale, Arizona, following what officials described as an extensive joint investigation involving local and federal law enforcement agencies.
Cacconie was convicted by an El Dorado County jury on July 17, 2025, of six counts of committing lewd acts upon a child under the age of 14. His sentencing was scheduled for Aug. 25, 2025.
According to authorities, prosecutors requested that Cacconie be remanded into custody while awaiting sentencing, but the request was denied. Instead, El Dorado County Judge Michael McLaughlin allowed him to be freed on $1 million bail after previously surrendering his passport and being fitted with a monitoring device.
Officials said the monitoring device stopped transmitting on Aug. 17, 2025. Cacconie was last seen in San Francisco on Aug. 22, 2025.
On the day he was scheduled to be sentenced, Aug. 25, 2025, family members informed the court they had reported him missing. Authorities said Cacconie left behind his phone, wallet and what was described as a suicide note.
As the search continued, a federal arrest warrant was issued on May 14, 2026, in the Eastern District of California for unlawful flight to avoid confinement, providing additional resources to aid efforts to locate him.
Investigators eventually tracked Cacconie to Scottsdale, where he was taken into custody without incident at approximately 9 a.m. by the FBI Phoenix Desert Hawk Fugitive Task Force. The task force includes FBI special agents, deputies from the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office and agents with the U.S. Border Patrol.
Authorities said Cacconie will make his initial court appearance in Scottsdale before being extradited back to California, where he will face sentencing on the child molestation convictions.
“We never stopped fighting for justice in this case,” El Dorado County District Attorney Vern Pierson said in a statement. “We are deeply grateful to our federal partners, whose collaboration was invaluable in locating and apprehending Cacconie. While nothing can erase the harm caused, we hope today’s outcome offers a measure of peace to Cacconie’s survivor and family, knowing that he will now finally be held accountable and sentenced for his crimes.”
FBI Sacramento Acting Special Agent in Charge Brian Tosh said investigators remained committed to finding Cacconie despite the lengthy search.
“Carl Cacconie underestimated law enforcement and our commitment to ensuring justice for those impacted by his crimes,” Tosh said. “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.”
The El Dorado County District Attorney’s Office and FBI Sacramento thanked the public for its support during the nearly 10-month search and also expressed appreciation to the survivor and her family for their patience throughout the investigation.
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