Abortion Doctor Slaying Suspect Caught

March 29 -- Anti-abortion rights activist James C. Kopp has been arrested in France and faces extradition in connection with the 1998 sniper killing of abortion provider Dr. Barnett Slepian, Justice Department officials said today.

Acting on information from the FBI, French law enforcement officials apprehended Kopp in Dinan, in the Brittany region of France, today after a two-year international manhunt for the murder suspect.

Kopp, one of the FBI's "Most Wanted Fugitives," was indicted by a federal grand jury last October and an Erie County, N.Y., grand jury in 1999 in connection with Slepian's slaying. He was arrested without incident and was unarmed, according to the FBI.

Slepian, 52, was killed in his Buffalo, N.Y.-area kitchen by a single shotfrom a high-powered rifle on Oct. 23, 1998.

In Washington today, Attorney General John Ashcroft said the United States is working with France to extradite Kopp to face charges here. "Violence is not a way to resolve our differences," he said.

At the same press conference, FBI Director Louis Freeh said the bureau is now investigating individuals within the United States who may have helped Kopp stay on the lam. Two individuals in New York City are under arrest for harboring Kopp, officials in Buffalo said this afternoon.

Before Kopp's arrest, the FBI investigation determined he was waiting for funds and was about to leave France.

Kopp Wanted in Other Shootings

FBI agents in Buffalo said Kopp had been living in Ireland for about a year, living in hostels and doing clerical work. Kopp left the country for France on March 12 with Irish authorities on his trail, FBI Agent Joel Mercer said.

Kopp, 46, has been a central figure on the violent fringe of the anti-abortion rights movement for many years. He has been known to use at least 28 aliases and was arrested in several states since 1990 for his aggressive anti-abortion tactics.

Federal investigators have fielded tips on Kopp's whereabouts from all over the world during their search for the fugitive, and received critical assistance from officials in Canada, Ireland, France and the United Kingdom, Freeh said.