Pilot for Saudi royals arrested on Sarasota warrant

NORTH PORT (FOX 13) - A pilot for the Saudi royal family was arrested on Tuesday in Bangor, Maine. He had been flagged for theft charges out of North Port in Florida. 

"It was kind of a surprise for us," said Josh Taylor with the police department. 

They'd been looking for Marcin Urbanski since 2016 and found him in an unlikely place. He was on board a plane owned by the Saudi royal family, working as a pilot. 

"A lot of these situations always seem like they have a couple degrees of separation," said Taylor. 

Urbanski, a Polish citizen, was accused of taking $9,000 from a North Port man in exchange for helping him become a pilot with Myanmar National Airlines. The man was told after one year of employment with the company, he'd get the money back. 

Days turned into weeks and, after four months, the man knew he'd been taken. 

In March of 2016, the man filed a report saying Urbanski had him wire the money to a Polish bank account. 

Police charged Urbanksi with grand theft, but he had left the country. 

"Fortunate for us that the proper policies and procedures were taking place to check everybody who came into the country and came back with this flag," Taylor said. 

Urbanski was arrested on Tuesday and appeared in a courtroom in Maine. The judge told him, "Florida wants you back."

"Yes," replied Urbanski, indicating he would not fight extradition to the sunshine state. 

Urbanski will now face a judge in Sarasota County. 

His 31 months on the run are finally over. 

The State Attorney's Office tells FOX 13 it is working to bring Urbanski back to face charges. He could be in Sarasota County within 10 days, but it may take longer.