THE NEWS CHICK BLOG

Colton Harris-Moore gains 17,000 fans in one day

Jul 12, 2010, 2:57 AM | Updated: Mar 28, 2011, 3:46 pm

ColtonTieColton Harris-Moore is still taking off, even though he’s behind bars in the Bahamas. Today it’s not a stolen plane taking him to another island, it’s the Internet propelling his fame.

“Free Colton” and “Let Colton Fly” merchandise is easy to find online – everything from t-shirts and baby onsies to mugs and book bags. One site has 212 shirt design options, and a total of 492 gifts to choose from. Need a new necktie for work?

A new Free Colton Harris-Moore website went online late yesterday with photos and video of the Barefoot (shackled) Bandit in the Bahamas. The site promises it will “have the address where you can mail him a letter and send him funds.” Also online, there’s a new “Free Colton Harris-Moore” Facebook group.

The original Facebook fan page dedicated to him gained more than 17,000 followers between 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. yesterday. As of 5:00 this afternoon, the Facebook page has over 80,000 supporters and counting.

A mix of comments show up for Harris-Moore among the the hundreds of new posts. The majority of the messages praise what the 19 year old has accomplished, and consider him a hero of our time because he took from the rich. An example of that sentiment comes from Jada Gates who writes:

Colton is one of my heroes…how sad, poor poor little rich people who lost some of their material possessions, wah wah. My family lost everything in a house fire, so I know what it truly feels like to lose…so if a couple of corporate big wigs lost of car, boat awww, that’s why they have insurance Colton is a damn genius.

One change for the Harris-Moore Facebook page since his capture is a growing number of people posting negative comments about the teen. He’s a “little punk” and nothing more. A Camano Island resident sums up that feeling with a this message he left on my blog post yesterday:

To all of Colton’s fans, Please publish your address so we can send some nice kid over to clean out your home or steal your car that may not be paid for. This kid is no hero, ask us retirees that he stole from.

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Colton Harris-Moore gains 17,000 fans in one day