Escaped Sonoma County inmate arrested in Las Vegas

Zephyr Malik Carter, a man convicted of identity theft who escaped from a work crew in July outside the north county jail, was caught this week in Las Vegas.

Carter was taken into custody by the FBI and the U.S. Marshal’s Service on Tuesday evening at a motel off the Las Vegas Strip, according to Sgt. Michael Raasch of the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office.

It was the second time Carter, 41, had to be captured by federal authorities since his arrest April 5 for his part in an identity theft scheme that involved making bogus credit cards in a Rohnert Park hotel room and then using the fake cards at the Graton Resort and Casino and other businesses, according to the Sheriff’s Office. After posting bail for his release, he failed to appear in court and was captured in May in the Oakland area by agents from the FBI and U.S. Marshal’s service.

Carter was sentenced June 9 to two years and eight months in prison, but ordered to serve the time at the Sonoma County Jail. While on a work crew near the county airport, Carter ran off.

According to Raasch, Carter was tracked to Las Vegas from a tip received after his photo was posted on the Northern California’s Most Wanted website.

You can reach Staff Writer Elizabeth M. Cosin at 521-5276 or elizabeth.cosin@pressdemocrat.com.