Michael Registe
Encyclopedia
Michael Jason Registe is an American criminal who was a fugitive
wanted for his alleged participation in a 2007 execution-style
double murder. FBI director Robert Mueller
announced Registe's addition to the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list on the July 26 edition of America's Most Wanted
. He was captured on August 27, 2008 in the Caribbean island of St. Maarten.
, Georgia
. He attended Spencer High School
, where he was an athlete in track and field
. He was voted to the All Bi-City team for his achievements in track. However, his athletic career ended due to his criminal activity. Registe earned his General Educational Development in prison.
Police Department on an unrelated charge of aggravated assault for a shooting in which the victim was severely wounded. On November 13, 2005, Columbus Police responded to a scene in which shots were reportedly fired at an apartment complex. After investigating the scene, police determined that Registe shot a man who was allegedly trying to buy drugs from him, striking the man in his head, his left hand and his left leg. Registe was charged with aggravated assault, but fled on foot before he could be apprehended.
After that shooting, he was believed to have fled to St. Thomas
, U.S. Virgin Islands
and he returned to Georgia in May 2007. Registe has had no known source of legitimate income, so he may have been engaged in illegal activities such as selling drugs to support himself.
, Georgia
arrived to a gruesome crime scene in which two Columbus State University
student athletes, Bryan Kilgore and Randy Andra Newton, Jr., were killed while sitting in a Chevrolet Blazer. They had been shot execution-style. Randy Newton was pronounced dead at the scene, while Bryan Kilgore died shortly afterward while being transported to Columbus Regional Hospital.
An investigation into the murders pointed to Registe, and arrest warrants were obtained charging him with allegedly committing the crimes. It is suspected that Registe fled Columbus the day after the murders and flew once again to Saint Thomas, Virgin Islands, using the pseudonym "Hakeem Penn". On July 23, 2007, a federal warrant was issued charging Registe with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.
On July 26, 2008 he was named by the FBI
as the 490th fugitive to be placed
on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives
. He replaced Jon Schillaci
on the list. There was a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to his capture being offered by the FBI.
On August 27, 2008, Registe was arrested without incident on the island of St. Maarten by St. Maarten Police officials in conjunction with the Antilles Director of Public Prosecution and through coordination with the FBI's Bridgetown
Legal Attaché. Officials have speculated his extradition to the United States may take from two weeks to several months. Muscogee County
district attorney Gray Conger told the news reporters that Registe will not face the death penalty once he is extradited to Columbus.
The first extradition hearing for Registe's case was postponed until December 11, 2008 at his lawyer’s request. Registe's lawyer in the extradition case, Remco Stomp, made a plea to the court for witnesses to be questioned in the case to determine the validity of the charges against his client.
Registe's lawyer requested on November 20, 2008 that the judges of the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba postpone the extradition hearing because he had not had sufficient time to study the extradition documents filed by the United States’ judicial authorities to discuss them with his client. Registe's lawyer requested that his client remain in St. Maarten due to doubts about Registe's likelihood of getting a fair trial in the United States:
"My client has been the victim of frenzy
in the United States. The media have described the alleged facts as an ‘execution-style murder
’ and my client has been mentioned in one breath with serial killers and with Osama bin Laden
. If my client would have to stand trial under such circumstances before a jury in a predominantly white state, then I have my serious doubts about the outcome."
On Dec 23, 2008, the high court of the Netherlands Antilles recommended Michael Registe be extradited to the U.S., however, Registe's attorney filed an appeal to the High Council, stating the high court's "advice was based on an antiquated and questionable theory." St. Maarten's governor will make the final decision about whether to extradite Registe but is delaying his decision until the High Council makes its ruling. Registe was in the Pointe Blanche House of Detention, where he had been held since his August 27 arrest at a local guesthouse.
On July 23, 2009, after numerous appeals, Registe returned to the United States, arriving at the Columbus Airport, escorted by FBI agents. He is currently incarcerated at the Muscogee County
jail. As a condition of his extradition, the authorities will not seek capital punishment in the case.
Fugitive
A fugitive is a person who is fleeing from custody, whether it be from private slavery, a government arrest, government or non-government questioning, vigilante violence, or outraged private individuals...
wanted for his alleged participation in a 2007 execution-style
Execution-style murder
Execution-style murder, also known as Chicago-style murder, and execution-style killing are news media buzzwords applied to various acts of criminal murder where the perpetrator kills at close range a conscious victim who is under the complete physical control of the assailant and who has been left...
double murder. FBI director Robert Mueller
Robert Mueller
Robert Swan Mueller III is the 6th and current Director of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation .-Early life:...
announced Registe's addition to the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list on the July 26 edition of America's Most Wanted
America's Most Wanted
America's Most Wanted is an American television program produced by 20th Television, and was the longest-running program of any kind in the history of the Fox Television Network until it was announced on May 16, 2011 that the series was canceled after twenty-three years, with the final episode...
. He was captured on August 27, 2008 in the Caribbean island of St. Maarten.
Early life
Registe was born in Fort BenningFort Benning
Fort Benning is a United States Army post located southeast of the city of Columbus in Muscogee and Chattahoochee counties in Georgia and Russell County, Alabama...
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
. He attended Spencer High School
Spencer High School (Georgia)
Spencer High School is located at 4340 Victory Drive in Columbus, Georgia. It was established in 1930 by the Columbus Public Schools as the first black high school in Columbus, Georgia. The school was named in honor of Dr. William Henry Spencer...
, where he was an athlete in track and field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
. He was voted to the All Bi-City team for his achievements in track. However, his athletic career ended due to his criminal activity. Registe earned his General Educational Development in prison.
Criminal record
Between 2000 and 2002 Registe was convicted of possession of marijuana, possession of burglary tools and motor vehicle theft. He served three months in jail in 2001 and ten months from August 2002 to June 2003 in Wayne State Prison.2005 assault
Additionally, Registe was wanted by the ColumbusColumbus, Georgia
Columbus is a city in and the county seat of Muscogee County, Georgia, United States, with which it is consolidated. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 189,885. It is the principal city of the Columbus, Georgia metropolitan area, which, in 2009, had an estimated population of 292,795...
Police Department on an unrelated charge of aggravated assault for a shooting in which the victim was severely wounded. On November 13, 2005, Columbus Police responded to a scene in which shots were reportedly fired at an apartment complex. After investigating the scene, police determined that Registe shot a man who was allegedly trying to buy drugs from him, striking the man in his head, his left hand and his left leg. Registe was charged with aggravated assault, but fled on foot before he could be apprehended.
After that shooting, he was believed to have fled to St. Thomas
Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands
Saint Thomas is an island in the Caribbean Sea and with the islands of Saint John, Saint Croix, and Water Island a county and constituent district of the United States Virgin Islands , an unincorporated territory of the United States. Located on the island is the territorial capital and port of...
, U.S. Virgin Islands
United States Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands of the United States are a group of islands in the Caribbean that are an insular area of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and are located in the Leeward Islands of the Lesser Antilles.The U.S...
and he returned to Georgia in May 2007. Registe has had no known source of legitimate income, so he may have been engaged in illegal activities such as selling drugs to support himself.
2007 double murder
On July 20, 2007, police officers in ColumbusColumbus, Georgia
Columbus is a city in and the county seat of Muscogee County, Georgia, United States, with which it is consolidated. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 189,885. It is the principal city of the Columbus, Georgia metropolitan area, which, in 2009, had an estimated population of 292,795...
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
arrived to a gruesome crime scene in which two Columbus State University
Columbus State University
Columbus State University is a public institution of higher learning located in Columbus, Georgia. Founded as Columbus College in 1958, the university was established and is administered by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, and is fully accredited by the Commission on...
student athletes, Bryan Kilgore and Randy Andra Newton, Jr., were killed while sitting in a Chevrolet Blazer. They had been shot execution-style. Randy Newton was pronounced dead at the scene, while Bryan Kilgore died shortly afterward while being transported to Columbus Regional Hospital.
An investigation into the murders pointed to Registe, and arrest warrants were obtained charging him with allegedly committing the crimes. It is suspected that Registe fled Columbus the day after the murders and flew once again to Saint Thomas, Virgin Islands, using the pseudonym "Hakeem Penn". On July 23, 2007, a federal warrant was issued charging Registe with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.
On July 26, 2008 he was named by the FBI
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
as the 490th fugitive to be placed
FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives, 2000s
-FBI Headlines in the 2000s:The 2000s started out badly for the FBI's much needed attempts to upgrade technology. First, the Trilogy project went far over the $380 million budget, and behind its three-year schedule. Then, Virtual Case File, or VCF, planned for completion in 2003, was officially...
on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives
FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives
The FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list arose from a conversation held in late 1949 between J. Edgar Hoover, Director of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation, and William Kinsey Hutchinson, International News Service Editor-in-Chief, who were discussing ways to promote capture of the...
. He replaced Jon Schillaci
Jon Schillaci
Jon Savarino Schillaci is an American sex offender and a former fugitive who was added to the FBI's Top Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list on September 7, 2007. Schillaci is the 488th fugitive to be placed on the list. He was captured on June 5, 2008 in San José de Gracia, Michoacán, Mexico after...
on the list. There was a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to his capture being offered by the FBI.
Capture and extradition
After Registe had been profiled on America's Most Wanted, authorities received numerous tips from the general public concerning Registe's whereabouts.On August 27, 2008, Registe was arrested without incident on the island of St. Maarten by St. Maarten Police officials in conjunction with the Antilles Director of Public Prosecution and through coordination with the FBI's Bridgetown
Bridgetown
The city of Bridgetown , metropolitan pop 96,578 , is the capital and largest city of the nation of Barbados. Formerly, the Town of Saint Michael, the Greater Bridgetown area is located within the parish of Saint Michael...
Legal Attaché. Officials have speculated his extradition to the United States may take from two weeks to several months. Muscogee County
Muscogee County, Georgia
Muscogee County is a county located on the central western border of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is part of the Columbus, Georgia-Alabama Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2000 census, the population was 186,291. The 2009 Census Estimate shows a population of 190,414...
district attorney Gray Conger told the news reporters that Registe will not face the death penalty once he is extradited to Columbus.
The first extradition hearing for Registe's case was postponed until December 11, 2008 at his lawyer’s request. Registe's lawyer in the extradition case, Remco Stomp, made a plea to the court for witnesses to be questioned in the case to determine the validity of the charges against his client.
Registe's lawyer requested on November 20, 2008 that the judges of the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba postpone the extradition hearing because he had not had sufficient time to study the extradition documents filed by the United States’ judicial authorities to discuss them with his client. Registe's lawyer requested that his client remain in St. Maarten due to doubts about Registe's likelihood of getting a fair trial in the United States:
"My client has been the victim of frenzy
Media circus
Media circus is a colloquial metaphor, or idiom, describing a news event where the media coverage is perceived to be out of proportion to the event being covered, such as the number of reporters at the scene, the amount of news media published or broadcast, and the level of media hype...
in the United States. The media have described the alleged facts as an ‘execution-style murder
Execution-style murder
Execution-style murder, also known as Chicago-style murder, and execution-style killing are news media buzzwords applied to various acts of criminal murder where the perpetrator kills at close range a conscious victim who is under the complete physical control of the assailant and who has been left...
’ and my client has been mentioned in one breath with serial killers and with Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden was the founder of the militant Islamist organization Al-Qaeda, the jihadist organization responsible for the September 11 attacks on the United States and numerous other mass-casualty attacks against civilian and military targets...
. If my client would have to stand trial under such circumstances before a jury in a predominantly white state, then I have my serious doubts about the outcome."
On Dec 23, 2008, the high court of the Netherlands Antilles recommended Michael Registe be extradited to the U.S., however, Registe's attorney filed an appeal to the High Council, stating the high court's "advice was based on an antiquated and questionable theory." St. Maarten's governor will make the final decision about whether to extradite Registe but is delaying his decision until the High Council makes its ruling. Registe was in the Pointe Blanche House of Detention, where he had been held since his August 27 arrest at a local guesthouse.
On July 23, 2009, after numerous appeals, Registe returned to the United States, arriving at the Columbus Airport, escorted by FBI agents. He is currently incarcerated at the Muscogee County
Muscogee County, Georgia
Muscogee County is a county located on the central western border of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is part of the Columbus, Georgia-Alabama Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2000 census, the population was 186,291. The 2009 Census Estimate shows a population of 190,414...
jail. As a condition of his extradition, the authorities will not seek capital punishment in the case.