Fugitive Arrested After 40 Years of Hiding Under Stolen Identity

Stephen Craig Campbell, wanted for a 1982 bombing, was captured in New Mexico after decades of evading authorities using a deceased classmate's identity.

Stephen Craig Campbell, 76, was apprehended on February 19, 2025, in Weed, New Mexico, following a standoff with law enforcement.
Campbell had been on the run since 1983 after being charged with attempted first-degree murder for a 1982 bombing that injured his estranged wife and destroyed two homes in Wyoming.
He evaded capture for decades by assuming the identity of Walter Lee Coffman, a deceased classmate from the University of Arkansas who died in 1975.
Authorities uncovered Campbell's identity fraud in 2019 during a routine driver's license renewal, leading to an investigation that revealed his long-standing use of fraudulent documents and collection of $140,000 in Social Security benefits under Coffman's name.
A search of Campbell's property uncovered 57 firearms and ammunition; he now faces federal fraud charges and potential additional charges, including extradition to Wyoming for the 1982 bombing case.

U.S. Department of Justice