Nashua Man Hickey Pleads Guilty to Sex Offender Registration Fraud

Thomas William Hickey, 34, of Nashua, pleaded guilty today to dodging sex offender registration laws after slipping across state lines and vanishing from authorities’ radar for months. The admission, delivered in federal court in Concord, N.H., caps a two-year evasion that began when Hickey quietly resettled in New Hampshire without notifying law enforcement — a legal requirement he knowingly violated.

Hickey’s criminal past dates back to 2003, when he was convicted in Florida on charges of lewd or lascivious molestation of a 12-year-old girl. That conviction stamped him for life as a registered sex offender, forcing him to report his whereabouts wherever he lived. He did so in Florida and later in Massachusetts — until he didn’t. By July 2017, Hickey had planted roots in Nashua but made no move to register, prompting a tip to the Nashua Police Department that launched a federal investigation.

Authorities quickly confirmed Hickey had dropped off the radar. The United States Marshals Service (USMS) checked with Massachusetts officials, who admitted they had no record of his departure. Tracking him down, a Deputy U.S. Marshal and a Nashua Police Detective confronted Hickey — who admitted he moved to New Hampshire specifically to hide his criminal status. He said he didn’t want people to know what he was.

Acting U.S. Attorney John J. Farley wasted no words: “When those who are required to register as sex offenders fail to comply with their obligation to do so, they will be prosecuted.” The case, he said, reflects the federal commitment to holding offenders accountable — especially those who try to vanish into the cracks between state jurisdictions.

The bust was a product of the New Hampshire Joint Fugitive Task Force, a coalition formed in 2002 that has since racked up over 7,029 arrests. Senior Inspector Mark Lewis of the USMS highlighted the force’s reach, noting that fugitive operations now span 94 district offices, 85 local task forces, and even overseas. “These arrests have ranged in seriousness from murder, assault, unregistered sex offenders, probation and parole violations,” Lewis said. “This is how we protect communities — by closing loopholes predators exploit.”

Hickey now faces sentencing on May 30, 2018. The case was investigated by the USMS and the Nashua Police Department and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Arnold Huftalen. His attempt to outrun his past has failed — and the justice system is making sure he pays the price.