By JENNIFER HOLLAND, Associated Press Writer
COLUMBIA, S.C. - An ex-convict captured in Georgia told a federal judge Wednesday he would not fight his return to South Carolina to face charges of murder and sexual assault, officials said.
AP Photo
Stephen Stanko, 37, who gained attention while in prison for co-writing a book on the penal system, waived extradition in Magistrate Court in Augusta, Ga., said Georgetown Sheriff A. Lane Cribb.
He is accused of killing his live-in girlfriend and an acquaintance, as well as raping a girl in the Myrtle Beach area Friday, authorities said.
Stanko's arrest outside a busy Augusta restaurant Tuesday came a day after authorities launched a nationwide manhunt for the convicted kidnapper.
Stanko, 37, is charged with two counts of murder and one count of criminal sexual conduct in South Carolina, officials said. A federal charge of unlawful flight to avoid prosecution was dropped.
Stanko appeared to make no attempt to hide during his flight.
He traveled throughout the weekend in a pickup truck belonging to a man he is accused of killing. In Columbia on Friday night, he flirted with a series of women and claimed he was a millionaire visiting from New York, witnesses told a Columbia newspaper.
"He wasn't afraid to draw attention to himself," said Lauren Propst, who works at the Blue Marlin restaurant and is an employee of The (Columbia) State. "He was very charismatic."
Stanko, who wore a three-piece suit, paid cash for a $300 tab at the Blue Marlin, where he joked with the bartender and waitstaff, and bought shots of alcohol for patrons until closing at 11 p.m.
Stanko then went with a crowd to the West Columbia pub, where he played pool and claimed to be a worth millions with heavy dealings in oil and real estate. Stanko got into a heated argument with a man in the group when he began mixing up his lies, observers said.
U.S. Marshal Deputy Tim Stec confirmed Stanko was spotted in Columbia on Friday, then in the Laurinburg, N.C., area Saturday. It was unclear when he arrived in Augusta.
Stanko is charged with murder in the deaths of Laura Ling, 43, a librarian who lived with him, and Henry Lee Turner, 74. Ling's body was discovered Friday after a teenage girl in the home called authorities — and said she had been raped by Stanko, Cribb said.
Stanko was released from prison nearly a year ago after serving most of a 10-year sentence for kidnapping a live-in girlfriend. While in prison, he co-wrote a book titled "Living in Prison: A History of the Correctional System With an Insider's View" with the help of two criminology professors.
COLUMBIA, S.C. - An ex-convict captured in Georgia told a federal judge Wednesday he would not fight his return to South Carolina to face charges of murder and sexual assault, officials said.
AP Photo
Stephen Stanko, 37, who gained attention while in prison for co-writing a book on the penal system, waived extradition in Magistrate Court in Augusta, Ga., said Georgetown Sheriff A. Lane Cribb.
He is accused of killing his live-in girlfriend and an acquaintance, as well as raping a girl in the Myrtle Beach area Friday, authorities said.
Stanko's arrest outside a busy Augusta restaurant Tuesday came a day after authorities launched a nationwide manhunt for the convicted kidnapper.
Stanko, 37, is charged with two counts of murder and one count of criminal sexual conduct in South Carolina, officials said. A federal charge of unlawful flight to avoid prosecution was dropped.
Stanko appeared to make no attempt to hide during his flight.
He traveled throughout the weekend in a pickup truck belonging to a man he is accused of killing. In Columbia on Friday night, he flirted with a series of women and claimed he was a millionaire visiting from New York, witnesses told a Columbia newspaper.
"He wasn't afraid to draw attention to himself," said Lauren Propst, who works at the Blue Marlin restaurant and is an employee of The (Columbia) State. "He was very charismatic."
Stanko, who wore a three-piece suit, paid cash for a $300 tab at the Blue Marlin, where he joked with the bartender and waitstaff, and bought shots of alcohol for patrons until closing at 11 p.m.
Stanko then went with a crowd to the West Columbia pub, where he played pool and claimed to be a worth millions with heavy dealings in oil and real estate. Stanko got into a heated argument with a man in the group when he began mixing up his lies, observers said.
U.S. Marshal Deputy Tim Stec confirmed Stanko was spotted in Columbia on Friday, then in the Laurinburg, N.C., area Saturday. It was unclear when he arrived in Augusta.
Stanko is charged with murder in the deaths of Laura Ling, 43, a librarian who lived with him, and Henry Lee Turner, 74. Ling's body was discovered Friday after a teenage girl in the home called authorities — and said she had been raped by Stanko, Cribb said.
Stanko was released from prison nearly a year ago after serving most of a 10-year sentence for kidnapping a live-in girlfriend. While in prison, he co-wrote a book titled "Living in Prison: A History of the Correctional System With an Insider's View" with the help of two criminology professors.
