Vancouver/Sparwood (With files from VPD, CityNews1130/Canadian Press) – NOVEMBER 14 UPDATE – Vancouver Police arrested Randall Hopley Tuesday morning, ending a 10-day search for the high-risk sex offender who fled his halfway house on November 4.
Hopley was arrested in the Downtown Eastside shortly after 6AM and is currently in custody at the Vancouver Jail.
NOVEMBER 5 ORIGINAL STORY – Vancouver Police are searching for a high-risk sex offender who failed to return to his halfway house and is now wanted Canada-wide.
Randall Hopley, 58, was last seen 3PM on Saturday November 4, and VPD has released his picture with hopes that someone will recognize him and call 9-1-1.
Hopley has a history of sexual assault, assault, and property crime convictions. He has committed three offences of a sexual nature against children in the past.
Hopley is 5’9″ tall and 176 pounds. He has brown hair and hazel-coloured eyes. He was last seen wearing a black coat, black pants, and a black hat.
Anyone who sees Randall Hopley, or has information on his whereabouts, is asked to call 9-1-1 immediately.
BACKGROUND:
In September 2011, three-year-old Kienan Hebert disappeared from his home, triggering an Amber Alert that lasted for four days. He was then returned to his home, unharmed, just as mysteriously as he had disappeared.
A massive manhunt for the child’s abductor ensued, and several days later, Mounties arrested Hopley near the B.C.-Alberta border.
Although he pleaded guilty to abducting the boy in 2011 and has since served his sentence, Hopley has had trouble complying with supervision orders.
Earlier this year, the National Parole Board recommended criminal charges against him after he was caught in a public library, just a meter away from some children.
The board says a long-term supervision order was needed for Hopley because he was an untreated sex offender with a high risk to reoffend.
Police are asking anyone who sees him or has any information about his whereabouts to call 911 immediately.
