Actor Randy Quaid and his wife held in Vermont on $500,00 bail each for fugitive charges after trying to enter the US from Canada

  • Quaid, 65, and his wife, Evi, were detained at the Vermont port of entry
  • Quaid is wanted in California on vandalism charges filed in 2010
  • The two failed to make a court appearance because they were in Vancouver
  • A warrant was issued for his arrest back then, but the couple have been in Canada for the last five years
  • A Vermont judge set bail at $500,000 each on suspicion of being fugitives
  • They could now be extradited to California

By Reuters Reporter

Published: 14:17 EDT, 12 October 2015 | Updated: 19:50 EDT, 12 October 2015

A Vermont judge ordered actor Randy Quaid held on a $500,000 bail on Monday after the film star was arrested on fugitive charges related to a 2010 trespassing allegation in California.

Quaid, 65, was arrested along with his wife, Evi, while attempting to cross into the United States from Canada on Saturday and are being held awaiting extradition on arrest warrants outstanding in California, police said.

Quaid is wanted in California on charges related to a 2010 incident in which he and his wife entered a Santa Barbara, California, building that the couple contends they legally owned at the time. 

He faces charges of vandalism, unauthorized entry into a dwelling and failure to appear for a court appearance in California.

Scroll down for video 

Fugitive charges: Quaid, 65, was arrested along with his wife, Evi, attempting to cross into the US from Canada on Saturday and are awaiting extradition on arrest warrants outstanding in California, police said

Evi Quaid appears in Vermont Superior Court in Burlington, Vermony, on Monday October 12, 2015years ago after being charged with vandalism in California

Evi Quaid appears in Vermont Superior Court in Burlington, Vermony, on Monday October 12, 2015years ago after being charged with vandalism in California

Evi and Randy Quaid were ordered held on $500,000 bail each on charges that they skipped out of the country five years ago after being charged with vandalism in California 

Evi and Randy Quaid were ordered held on $500,000 bail each on charges that they skipped out of the country five years ago after being charged with vandalism in California 

During a court appearance in St. Albans, Quaid said he had not been informed ahead of time of the 2010 court proceeding, which he said occurred while he was in Vancouver on a previously scheduled trip.

'We heard about it through the Internet, that we'd missed this court appearance,' said Quaid, sporting long hair and a bushy gray beard. 

His lawyer suggested the bail amount, based on an outstanding bail order in California, was excessive.

He also offered a lengthy explanation of what he said was a bail bondsman's mishandling of his California case.

'I don't disagree with you that $500,000 is high bail,' Vermont Superior Court Judge Alison Arms told Quaid. 

'However, this court is considering the fact that this warrant was issued almost exactly five years ago and that Mr. Quaid has been in Canada that entire time.'

The Independence Day actor, 65, is wanted in Santa Barbara, California, to face felony vandalism charges filed in 2010 after he and his wife, Evi, 52, were found squatting in a guesthouse of a home they previously owned. Quaid's appearance has changed dramatically over the last five years while he lived in Canada 

Instead of staying to face the charges, Randy and Evi (pictured in 2010) fled to Canada after their arrest and claimed asylum on the basis that they were being hunted by a celebrity hit-squad

Instead of staying to face the charges, Randy and Evi (pictured in 2010) fled to Canada after their arrest and claimed asylum on the basis that they were being hunted by a celebrity hit-squad

Randy Quaid and his wife, Evi Quaid, were stopped on Friday night after crossing the Canadian border into Vermont in West Berkshire

Randy Quaid and his wife, Evi Quaid, were stopped on Friday night after crossing the Canadian border into Vermont in West Berkshire

Randy Quaid is the older brother of fellow actor Dennis Quaid, who is picutred here at the Annual Hamptons International Film Festival for the screening of his new film Truth last Thursday 

Randy Quaid is the older brother of fellow actor Dennis Quaid, who is picutred here at the Annual Hamptons International Film Festival for the screening of his new film Truth last Thursday 

Evi Quaid was also ordered held on a $500,000 bail in a separate court appearance.

Randy Quaid is known for movies such as 'The Last Picture Show' and 'The Last Detail,' for which he received an Oscar nomination, as well as the 1980s 'Vacation' comedies. 

He is the older brother of actor Dennis Quaid.

Arms declined to immediately rule on whether she had probable cause to hold Quaid pending possible extradition to California, after Vermont prosecutors said they were unable to produce more details on the California charges due to Monday's Columbus Day holiday. 

The judge gave them until Thursday to produce those documents.

Evi Quaid is a dual U.S.-Canadian citizen, while Randy Quaid has been seeking Canadian citizenship as the couple has lived in Montreal for the past three years.

DESCENT INTO MADNESS? TIMELINE OF THE QUAIDS' LEGAL TROUBLES 

April 2010: The couple are arrested and charged with felony burglary and vandalism after being found living in the guest house of a California property that Quaid used to own. 

According to documents, they smashed a $7,000 mirror and replaced it with an image of themselves

October: Randy and Evi flee to Canada where the claim asylum, saying they are afraid to return home because they believe the 'star whackers', a hit-squad targeting celebrities, are after them. 

They give the 'mysterious' deaths of Heath Ledger and David Carradine as examples of potential assassinations

July 2011: Despite applications from the Santa Barbara state department to have the couple brought back to America, the U.S. State Department decided not to pursue their extradition, meaning they are allowed to remain in Canada

2012: Evi's application for citizenship is granted, allowing her to permanently remain in the country

January 2013: The Canadian government turns down Randy Quaid's application for citizenship.

He disappears after the Canada Border Services Agency and the Montreal police rule he has not been meeting the criteria for staying in the country

March 2015: While missing from authorities, Quaid and his wife upload a disturbing series of videos in which they attack Rupert Murdoch, saying he never thanked Quaid for being in the film Independence Day. Quiad then puts a Murdoch mask on his wife before simulating a sex act.

In a second graphic clip the couple are seen having sex with one another, and in a particularly gartuitous scene Quaid appears to choke Evi with a belt 

April: Randy Quaid is sent back to court after resurfacing in Montreal, and tells a hearing that all he wants to do is be with his wife, no matter what conditions are placed upon him. 

He is freed after his father-in-law offers up a $10,000 bond, but must report his whereabouts to immigration officials

October 6: While taking part in one of those meetings Quaid is arrested.While the circumstances of his arrest are unclear, it raises the prospect of him being deported back to the US. 

He is still under a deportation order, meaning he can be sent away at any time.

Shortly after his arrest, his wife releases a bizarre YouTube video in which the couple are seen drinking in the park on their wedding anniversary before ranting against the government 

October 9: Quaid and his wife, Evi, were taken into custody Friday night while trying to cross into the United States from Canada

US Customs and Border Protection agents detained the Quaids at the Vermont port of entry at about 8pm on Friday after determining they were fugitives from justice and subject to extradition 

Advertisement

Randy Quaid and wife held on $500,000 bail in Vermont

Most watched News videos

Comments 98

Share what you think

  View all

The comments below have not been moderated.

  View all

The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.

We are no longer accepting comments on this article.