California man arrested 31 years after escaping from Dublin prison

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- A 79-year-old California man was arrested Thursday after being on the run for 31 years.

Back in 1994, Ronald Keith Harvey escaped from FCI Dublin after he was convicted of running an illegal marijuana farm in the years prior.

"He wasn't cultivating a small amount. He was arrested with 600 plus plants and firearms. So, it was a pretty big operation that he was running," said Cruz Moya.

Deputy U.S. Marshal Cruz Moya is the person who's been in charge of Harvey's case. He says his team got a new lead earlier this year that ultimately led them to Harvey's location.

"It does happen. There are some people who are better than others at absconding justice and just going on the run," Moya said.

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Harvey was arrested in Nevada City, about 60 miles northeast of Sacramento.

He had been living there with a woman named DeeVee Brown since October.

Brown, who says she casually dated Harvey about 35 years ago, said she had no idea he had a warrant out for his arrest.

In fact, Brown says she checked in with the Nevada County sheriff every month to see if Harvey had an outstanding warrant.

She spoke to ABC7 News by phone after U.S. Marshals showed up at her house to take Harvey into custody.

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"I was very shocked, of course. He had his own room. He paid rent every month to me," Brown said.

U.S. Marshals say Harvey still has about four years left from his 1990s prison sentence.

So that means he'll potentially have to serve that time in addition to whatever sentencing he gets for fleeing from prison and evading capture.

Moya says law enforcement is unsure of where Harvey might have been living prior to moving in with Brown. But he tells us he's just happy they've recaptured their man after all these years.

"One thing about the marshal service is that we will find you, no matter how long it takes," Moya said.