Knife-Wielding Manchester Fugitive Arrested in New York

Concord, NH – The U.S. Marshals Service – NH Joint Fugitive Task Force is pleased to announce the capture of “NH Most Wanted” fugitive, Desmel Cooper, who was taken into custody by New York’s Nassau County Police Department. Having both local and federal warrants, this arrest signals the end of media campaigns promoted by the Manchester Police Department and U.S. Marshals Service. 

Cooper, 40, was on federal supervision when he and another individual got into an altercation outside an Elm St. bar in Manchester on Feb. 12. Cooper allegedly produced a knife and stabbed another man 4 times during the incident, causing significant organ damage. Manchester PD issued a warrant for Cooper as a result of his alleged involvement, but this incident would lead to additional worries for Cooper, who reportedly fled the state after the incident. 

A federal supervised release violation warrant was issued for Cooper once the U.S. Probation Office was made aware of the Feb. 12 street fight. Cooper was on federal supervision after a 2011 narcotics conviction in the U.S. District Court for the District of Vermont. He was then prosecuted for possessing a “shank” in a federal facility in 2014. The triggering of the federal warrant, Cooper’s history of violent and threatening behavior, and his potential ties to Brooklyn, NY, led to the U.S. Marshals Service amplifying Manchester PD’s Feb. 12 press release in hopes to cast a wider net. 

Cooper was just East of Brooklyn when he was identified by Nassau County Police Officers only a few days after the Feb. 22 U.S. Marshals Service press release. Cooper accrued minor local charges and was taken into custody without incident. Hillsborough County will extradite Cooper on the Manchester warrant, and Cooper will answer for his federal charges once back in New Hampshire. 

Cooper had been aired as a “NH Most Wanted” on WTPL-FM, WNTK-FM, WTSN-FM, WEMJ-FM, The Union Leader, The Nashua Telegraph, The Patch, Foster’s Daily Democrat, Manchester Information, the Manchester Ink Link, the Rochester Voice and prominently featured on the internet. Additionally, all “NH Most Wanted” featured fugitives are distributed throughout the New Hampshire law enforcement network. The U.S. Marshals Service District of New Hampshire media campaigns have been a very successful tool, resulting in the location and arrest of numerous fugitives since 2007.  

            

Since the inception of the U.S. Marshals - New Hampshire Joint Fugitive Task Force in 2002, these partnerships have resulted in over 8,700 arrests. These arrests have ranged in seriousness from murder, assault, unregistered sex offenders, probation and parole violations and numerous other serious offenses. Nationally the United States Marshals Service fugitive programs are carried out with local law enforcement in 94 district offices, 85 local fugitive task forces, 8 regional task forces, as well as a growing network of offices in foreign countries.