Teacher Fled Us After Child Porn Charges

John Mark Karr, the thin, timid man arrested in Thailand in connection with the 1996 murder of JonBenet Ramsey, fled from the US after being charged with possession of child pornography.

A teacher at a girls' school in northern California, the then-married father of three jumped bail and appears to have spent the last five years travelling around the world before arriving in Thailand two months ago.

His brother, Nate, told reporters yesterday that Mr Karr had been researching a book about men who commit crimes against girls. For the past two years he is believed to have been in south-east Asia, visiting Thailand five times, most recently arriving from Malaysia.

Thai officials said Mr Karr had sought work as a teacher in Thailand. A teaching recruitment website offered more details of his travels, including stints as a teacher of English in Honduras, Costa Rica and South Korea. He also worked in Germany and Holland, where he was employed by families to look after and teach their young children.

The 41-year-old was born in Georgia, and lived with his grandparents from the age of 11. He taught children in Georgia and Alabama before moving to California. The Ramseys' family attorney said Mr Karr had at one time lived near the Ramseys in Georgia.

Mr Karr's ex-wife said yesterday that she had been with him in Alabama at Christmas 1996, the time when the murder was committed. His father said Mr Karr had never been to Boulder, Colorado, where the Ramseys lived, although records show that he applied for a teaching permit in the state.