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Texas Officials Release Craigslist Murder Suspect

By Stevie J. Stevenson Jr.

AKRON, Ohio - According to court records Richard Beasley, the suspect in the craigslist murder and a Texas parolee was in an Ohio jail but was released after Texas officials said they only wanted him if he were convicted on a drug charge. Beasley asked to be released on bond, and on July 12, Akron Municipal Judge John Murphy granted his request.

Richard Beasley according to authorities is now linked to a recent plot to run fake Craigslist wanted ads in an attempt to lure robbery victims.

Craigslist Killer - beware internet strangers Graphic: Alan Gray, NewsBlaze

Texas Officials say they never authorized Beasley's release and filed two additional warrants for his arrest after the Texas Parole Authority learned he'd been freed.

The legal problems facing the 52-year-old Richard Beasley who is a self-styled chaplain and youth mentor, are mounting: His attorney said a prostitution case involving Beasley and a 17-year-old boy would be upgraded with a racketeering charge Friday.

A 15-count count indictment returned Wednesday charges Beasley with promoting prostitution.

"To call me a con man when I sacrificed for others is wrong," wrote Beasley, "To turn their back on me is not following Christ's example..."

Beasley, in a four-page handwritten letter to the Akron Beacon Journal, said he has been miscast as a con man when he had helped feed, house and counsel scores of needy families, drunks, drug addicts, the mentally ill and crime suspects for years.

Aimlessly sending your resume to unknown emails from craigslist gives a potential predator all the tools he/she needs to locate an unsuspected victim.

Use caution when making email appointments to meet some place unfamiliar to you.

If after you email your resume and you get another email requesting you to fill out and email back a background check form that asks you for private information such as social security number, DOB and addresses. Identity theft is real.

Stevie J. Stevenson Jr. is a freelance writer and business owner. Contact him at NewsBlaze.