<p>CASA GRANDE, Ariz. — A 42-year-old Arizona man sought on sex abuse-related charges was arrested after he spent more than three months hiding in the desert, a sheriff’s office said Thursday.</p>
<p>Deputies aided by Border Patrol agents and state police arrested Marana-area resident David Whitaker on Monday after finding him living in a shack he had constructed, the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office said. </p>
<p>Whitaker was at large since Nov. 28 when deputies received a report of his alleged sexual contact with a 13-year-old girl. Whitaker had left his home before deputies got there, the office said in a statement.</p>
<p>Deputies immediately began searching and conducting surveillance operations for Whitaker who was described to them as a survivalist who could live off the grid, the office said.</p>
<p>In March, a state Department of Public Safety detective obtained information on Whitaker’s possible location and he then was observed through binoculars, the office said.</p>
<p>Law enforcement personnel surrounded the area with the help of a Border Patrol plane, and Whitaker as found in the shack, the office said.</p>
<p>Whitaker survived by catching fish from a nearby canal and hunting javelina and rabbits, the office said.</p>
<p>“We are hopeful his arrest brings the victim and the victim’s family some peace of mind,” Sheriff Mark Lamb said.</p>
<p>Whitaker was arrested on suspicion of sexual abuse, sexual conduct with a minor and indecent exposure, the Casa Grande Dispatch <a href="https://www.pinalcentral.com/florence_reminder_blade_tribune/news/survivalist-eludes-law-enforcement-for-107-days-in-pinal-desert/article_cfb3307e-f083-504d-a796-e15c8ba7178c.html">reported</a>.</p>
<p>He remained in jail Friday. Online court records didn’t show a defense lawyer for Whitaker who could comment on the allegations against him.</p>
