Case 057: Elizabeth Anna Duke | The Radical Who Bombed the Capitol and Vanished

She started as a campus activist.She ended up on the FBI’s Most Wanted list.In this episode of Fugitive Files, we trace the unlikely path of Elizabeth Anna Duke — from outspoken academic to alleged domestic terrorist.In 1973, Duke made headlines for suing North Texas State University after her job offer was rescinded due to her public, profanity-filled criticism of university leadership. While she claimed First Amendment protection, the court sided with the university, citing her role as a teaching assistant and the disruptive nature of her speech.But what followed was far more radical.Federal documents and FBI profiles later tied Duke to the May 19th Communist Organization (M19CO) — a militant left-wing group linked to a series of bombings on U.S. government buildings, including the 1983 bombing of the U.S. Capitol. She was indicted for her alleged involvement in the group’s violent campaign and later charged with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.Duke vanished before trial and has remained a fugitive for decades, with the FBI still actively seeking her.We explore:The rise of M19CO and its underground operationsThe ideological motives behind the Capitol bombingDuke’s disappearance and rumored aliasesAnd the unanswered question: How has she evaded capture for so long?From protest to prosecution, her story is a chilling look at extremism, ideology, and the thin line between activism and domestic terror.This is Fugitive Files. Let’s get into it.