In a surprising twist, a man named George Wright, who had been running from the law for over 40 years, was finally caught in 2023 in Portugal—all because of a simple mistake. George’s wild story started way back in 1962 when he was just 19. He and some friends robbed a gas station in New Jersey, USA, and during the crime, he shot and killed a worker named Walter Patterson, a World War II veteran. George was caught, pleaded “no contest” to murder, and got sent to prison for 15 to 30 years. But in 1970, he broke out of jail with three other men and disappeared.
Two years later, in 1972, George joined a group called the Black Liberation Army and pulled off a daring plane hijacking. They took over a Delta Air Lines flight from Detroit to Miami, demanding $1 million—the biggest ransom in U.S. history at the time. After getting the money, they forced the plane to fly to Algeria, a country in North Africa. George vanished again, leaving cops and the FBI stumped. For decades, he lived free, hiding his past while investigators searched for him across the world.
Fast forward to 2023. George, now 79, was living quietly in a small Portuguese town called Praia da Luz under a fake name, José Luís Jorge dos Santos. He had a wife, two kids, and a peaceful life—until a random police check changed everything. The article says cops were looking into a minor issue, possibly a neighbor complaint, and asked for his ID. George gave them his fake name, but something didn’t add up. They took his fingerprints, and when they ran them through a system, it matched the old records from his crimes in the U.S. After 41 years on the run, his past caught up with him by pure accident.
