Washington man faces kidnap charges for taking Mecosta Co. teen out of state

PARIS, MI — A Northern Michigan teenager is on her way back home to be reunited with her family after deputies said she was taken from her home by a 36-year-old man from out-of-state. The 13-year-old teen disappeared July 31.

But after investigators from the Mecosta County Sheriff’s Office looked deeper into what happened, Sheriff Brian Miller said they were able to get some good leads that helped them find her out west in Washington state with a man she had met online.

“This isn’t something where she went against her will. But again, she’s 13 years old, you know, and he’s a 36-year-old male that knows better, knew what he was doing and is going to be held accountable for that,” said Miller.

Mecosta County Sheriff Brian Miller said a 13-year-old from Paris, Michigan was reported to have left her house on July 31st without a phone and they couldn’t find her.

“For the five days we were searching for her, looking, we had a couple of sightings, one in Chase, another one over on the eastern part of the county that didn’t turn up anything,” said Miller.

He said they learned from family members that she had been talking to a 36-year-old man from Spanaway, Washington on the internet for at least a few months.

“We jumped on it right away and were able, through some good police work, to identify who this individual was and immediately contacted law there,” said Miller.

Miller said police there found her at the man’s home on Monday and discovered evidence that led them to believe he drove to Michigan to pick her up.

“Just through messaging back and forth that we were able to get after the fact that look like he drove here, may have actually gotten cited in North Dakota for speeding on his way here,” said Miller.

The 13-year-old was placed in protective custody and is headed back to Michigan. The suspect was arrested and is facing kidnapping charges

Detective Carly Pitrago with the Michigan State Police’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force said these types of cases are becoming more common but there are things you can do to be safer online, like not posting specific identifying information.

“It’s super important to be careful of what you’re posting, making sure you’re not posting what you know, school your kids are going to or what classes or teachers that they have,” said Pitrago.

MSP said it’s also important for parents to talk to their kids, look for red flags and know exactly what your kids are doing online.

“When kids start to kind of isolate and feel like they need to reach out to people online for some attention, some emotional support, that’s when we see kids making those connections with strangers that can then they can then be groomed and lead to something even more,” said Pitrago.