QUESTION: What ever happened to Hawaii State Hospital escapee David True Seal?

ANSWER: Seal, who was committed to the hospital in 2002 after allegedly kidnapping and sexually assaulting an 8-year-old girl, has been missing 45 days today, the longest escape from the hospital since 2000.

Police are still looking for Seal, 30, and have no new leads, said Michelle Yu, Honolulu police spokeswoman.

At about 2:30 p.m. Dec. 3, Seal scaled a chain-link fence surrounding a supervised courtyard at the facility and fled toward Kaneohe town, police said.

Police immediately searched by helicopter and with dogs. Days after Seal escaped, possible sightings of him were reported to police, including in the Ward and Moanalua areas, but couldn't be confirmed.

Seal was one of eight hospital escapees last year. All except Seal have been returned to the hospital, said Janice Okubo, Department of Health spokeswoman.

The previous longest patient escape lasted 39 days, in 2001, Okubo said. That was Leonard Moore, who escaped by throwing a TV through a window.

Seal, who had previously tried to escape twice, is wanted on suspicion of second-degree escape.

He was declared insane after the alleged sexual assault and kidnapping of an 8-year-old girl on Maui on Halloween night in 2001. Seal allegedly grabbed the girl near a park, but was spotted by another man in a secluded area taking the girl's clothes off.

Seal was caught in the ocean naked and hanging onto a buoy outside the entrance to the Lahaina harbor.

He is 5 feet 10 inches tall, about 170 pounds, and has brown hair and blue eyes.

Police ask anyone with information on his whereabouts to call Honolulu CrimeStoppers at 955-8300 or *CRIME from a cell phone.