American child sex offence suspect returned to Alabama after Phuket arrest
Lance Michael Beck was arrested in Phuket on August 29 after US authorities sought help locating him. He now faces five charges in Alabama and is being held without bail.
American suspect Lance Michael Beck has been returned to Alabama after his arrest in Phuket over alleged child sex offences, US officials said on September 17, 2026.
Beck was arrested by Thai police in Phuket on August 29 after US authorities requested assistance in locating him. He is now being held without bail at St Clair County Jail in Alabama, where legal proceedings are continuing.
US authorities said Beck faces five charges involving a child under 12 in St Clair County: first-degree rape, first-degree sodomy, sexual torture, facilitating the travel of a child for a sexual purpose and human trafficking.
The FBI said it obtained a federal warrant for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution after learning that Beck had fled to Thailand. The operation involved investigators from the Investigation Division Metropolitan Bureau, Immigration Division 3 and Sakhu Police Station.
According to the FBI’s Birmingham Field Office, Thai police located and arrested Beck within eight hours of receiving the warrant. He was returned to Birmingham, Alabama, less than three weeks later.
