More than two decades before his arrest, an “America’s Most Wanted” fugitive appeared to be laying the groundwork for a life on the run, according to newly examined court records that describe emails to his lawyer, a canceled trip to London and identity-changing materials discovered in his home.
Ronald L. Fischer, 69, was arrested Thursday on a sailboat off the coast of New Jersey, ending a 20-year search that began when he vanished in the middle of a Rhode Island sexual assault trial.
The FBI told INC News last week that investigators got their key break from an online tipster. That lead ultimately brought federal agents and the U.S. Marshals Service to the vessel where Fischer had allegedly been living under the name Richard Graydon.
A Rhode Island State Police wanted image of Ronald L. Fischer now carries a “Captured” banner following his arrest more than 20 years after he fled during his sexual assault trial. (FBI)
Fischer failed to return to Rhode Island Superior Court after disappearing in April 2005. The trial continued without him, and a jury convicted him of first-degree sexual assault. Authorities had been searching for him ever since, until his capture last week.
The newly reviewed affidavit offers the clearest look yet at what law enforcement found as they began piecing together Fischer’s disappearance in the days after he fled.
According to a federal affidavit filed in U.S. District Court in Rhode Island, Fischer sent an email to his attorney on April 23, 2005, stating that he intended to leave the country.
That same night, investigators said, he phoned each of his daughters and told them he was departing the United States. Authorities also found that Fischer had contacted a New York travel agency and bought an American Airlines ticket from Boston to London, only to cancel the booking before the flight departed.
Ronald L. Fischer, a former anesthesiologist and one of Rhode Island’s longest-wanted fugitives, was captured after more than 20 years on the run, authorities said. (Rhode Island State Police)
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Hours later, surveillance cameras captured Fischer returning a rental car to an Enterprise location in Boston shortly after midnight before walking away carrying two travel bags over his shoulder.
Investigators wrote that Fischer spent the days before his disappearance putting his affairs in order. He transferred vehicles to each of his daughters, instructed them to remove their belongings from his home and disposed of a Jaguar before vanishing.
Authorities also reviewed an email Fischer allegedly sent to attorney Robert Mann in which they said he explained he had decided not to risk being convicted in state court and instead planned to leave the U.S. to enjoy what he described as “a good, safe, secure and comfortable life.”
A search of Fischer’s home uncovered literature explaining how people could change their identities and disappear.
Fischer’s ex-wife, Dr. Nancy Stein, told investigators he was well traveled, had friends in other parts of the world –including Brazil –and believed he might attempt to charter a boat.
The U.S. Marshals Service told INC News investigators believe Fischer likely left the U.S. by boat after disappearing in 2005. Authorities also believe he paid more than $1 million for the 56-foot sailboat “Silver Lining,” though they have not yet confirmed when or how he acquired the vessel.
Investigators believe Fischer had been using the alias Richard Graydon since at least 2017, adding he may have adopted it earlier. Authorities also said Fischer may have alternated between living aboard the sailboat and staying on shore during his years as a fugitive.
A Rhode Island State Police wanted poster of Ronald L. Fischer displays a “Captured” banner after authorities arrested the former fugitive more than 20 years after he disappeared during his sexual assault trial. Newly reviewed court records detail the steps investigators say Fischer took before vanishing in 2005. (Getty Images ; Rhode Island State Police)
Federal authorities ultimately obtained an unlawful flight warrant, alleging Fischer had traveled in interstate or foreign commerce to avoid prosecution.
Fischer’s years on the run ended Thursday when investigators intercepted the 56-foot sailboat “Silver Lining” off the New Jersey coast after what the FBI described as “a tip from an online sleuth.”
He was taken into custody without incident during a coordinated operation involving the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service, the U.S. Coast Guard and other law enforcement agencies.
The U.S. Marshals Service did not immediately respond to INC News’s request for additional information about where Fischer spent the past two decades, when he first adopted the alias Richard Graydon or how he acquired the sailboat where he was ultimately captured.
