The FBI had offered $10,000 for his arrest, but when federal marshals finally delivered Colton Harris-Moore to Miami last night, the 19-year-old rogue had over 100,000 followers on Facebook, had been lionized in a dozen magazines, and had become the most beloved criminal since Robin Hood.

You may have heard of him as “The Barefoot Bandit,” this coming from the fact he was usually barefooted when he would steal airplanes, speedboats and fancy cars. Authorities in several states and three countries say he’s wanted for almost 100 robberies since he busted out of a detention center near Seattle two years ago.

But he has enamored himself to a thirsty public with his daring heists, his adrenalin-filled escapes and his obvious genius; Harris-Moore has stolen five airplanes and never graduated from high school, much less taken a flying lesson. His high-speed boat chases were better than the James Bond movies that Colt, as he is called, once watched as a child.

He grew up in a tawdry trailer near Puget Sound. He didn’t have a father and his mom was bad about booze. He had nothing, save an imagination, and when he first started stealing from vacation homes, he would often plop down on the house’s sofa, get something from the fridge, and watch TV for awhile before he’d scram.

Colt hated drugs and booze, learning early what they had done to any semblance of a family he had, but he loved computers and other electrical gadgets. His wits were uncanny, learning how to get the PIN numbers off stolen credit cards for cash withdrawals and studying a laptop screen for hours in his quest of flying a plane.

He memorized cockpits, signed on to flight simulators, and downloaded flight manuals. The great aviator Amelia Earhart once said, "In soloing – as in other activities – it is far easier to start something than it is to finish it," but our daring rogue didn’t care.

At a court appearance in the Bahamas yesterday, Colt told an officer he’d been studying airplanes “since kindergarten” and it is now believed his penchant for flying was his downfall. When he flew a stolen plane 1,200 miles to the Bahamas last week, he ditched it near Great Abaco Island and its emergency locator-beacon automatically called the cops.

Face it, very few people steal airplanes. One report said that only seven were reported stolen in 2009, but Harris-Moore has reportedly stolen five in the past two years. Each flight was more incredible than the last and to actually fly to the Bahamas, and then steal a powerful motorboat to evade the police, stokes the imagination and kindles the public’s delight.

Of course, the minute his picture was on every TV in the islands as “The Barefoot Celebrity,” there were countless sightings being reported of the 6-foot-5 teenager who, about a year ago, left $100 at a Washington State animal shelter with the now-famous note, “Just passing by, had some extra cash. Take care of the dogs. Colton Harris-Moore (AKA The Barefoot Bandit)”.

It was in another speedboat that he was finally captured early Sunday morning. Around 2 a.m. he was spotted on Harbor Island and, when the police closed in, his stolen boat ran aground in the shallows. One witness said Colt threw his computer in the water, put a gun to his head and threatened to kill himself, but police talked him into throwing the pistol in the water as well.

Colt was extradited to the United States Tuesday after being fined $300 for illegally landing a plane in the Bahamas and was schedule to appear in a Miami Federal Court this morning before he’ll be taken back to Washington state where a jumbled and lengthy legal puzzle will be sorted out.

But his story is long from being over. Bob Friel, a reporter who has written about Harris-Moore in Outside magazine, has been working on a book for months and has just sold its movie rights to 20th Century Fox.

“It’s like the movie ‘Catch Me If You Can,” Friel explained. “People are just fascinated by those who can commit crimes and outsmart the cops.”

There are now T-shirts that can be ordered online that say, “Let Colton Fly,” and “Free Colton,” but it is a better guess the jig is up for “The Barefoot Bandit.” Somebody just better tell the jailer this 19-year-old is pretty resourceful, to say the least.

royexum@aol.com

Colton Harris-Moore, The Barefoot Bandit