Want to get away with a crime? A complicated last name might help.

A Maine man was arrested last week in Vermont after allegedly escaping from Aroostook County Jail 33 years ago. And it was a spelling mistake on a warrant that helped him remain on the run for so long, the Bangor Daily News reports.

Albert Marcheterre, 56, of Eden, Vermont, was arrested on November 2 by Vermont State Police. Marcheterre allegedly escaped from jail in 1981 while awaiting trial on a felony burglary charge. The arrest warrant issued for Marcheterre following his escape, however, misspelled his name as “Maschererre.’’ He took on the alias Albert Michael Dumais and was arrested numerous times between 1992 and 2002. Between the misspelled warrant and the alias, it took years for authorities to link the false identity with his FBI number and criminal records.


Marcheterre’s real identity was first uncovered in 2004 when he was arrested for being a felon in possession of a firearm. A federal complaint signed by FBI Special Agent James McCarty said that identifiers on the 1981 warrant, which included date of birth, scars, tattoos and a glass eye, matched those of Dumais.

On Thursday, Marcheterre was transported to the Aroostook County Jail–the first time he’s been back since he scaled the fence over three decades ago. Marcheterre’s first court appearance in Maine has not been set. If convicted on federal charges of unlawful flight to escape prosecution, Marcheterre could face up to five years in prison and a fine of $250,000 — but only if they spell his name right.