Ailing fugitive headed back to Md. 43 years later

CLINTON, N.C. -- An ailing 81-year-old North Carolina man who escaped from a Maryland prison 43 years ago appears to be headed back to jail.

A defense attorney says Willie Parker was unexpectedly arrested and taken to court on Friday morning, and the governor has signed extradition papers.

Parker had served about a quarter of a 40-year sentence for robbery with a deadly weapon when he escaped Eastern Correctional Camp in Maryland in 1965. He was tracked down in February as part of Maryland's effort to clear outstanding warrants.

Parker attorney Andrew Jackson says Parker was taken into custody without medicine or a change of clothes.