Florida police arrested a 58-year-old man for allegedly drugging and sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl in a hotel.
The incident unfolded on Saturday at a hotel on Highway 98 East in Destin, a city in the northwestern part of the state.
The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement on Facebook that a 12-year-old girl had reported being drugged and sexually assaulted numerous times at a hotel room.
Investigators said that the girl asked 58-year-old Jack Colton for a cigarette, but the man gave her what she believed to be crystal methamphetamine instead. After she was drugged, she said the man sexually assaulted her numerous times.
The girl was transported to a hospital to receive medical treatment.
Police located Colton and arrested him at around 2 a.m. on Sunday. He was charged with sexual assault with a victim between the ages of twelve and eighteen.
Investigators said that Colton told them he believed the girl to be 23 years old.
Potential evidence was found at the hotel room, according to police, who also impounded the suspect’s truck.
“The leadup to this arrest involved great teamwork by our patrol deputies, Criminal Investigations Division, Street Crimes, K9 and Drone Units,” said Sheriff Eric Aden in the Facebook statement.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that one in three women will experience sexual violence in their lifetime. Florida officials reported 331 cases of attempted rape and 8,105 cases of rape in 2018, though experts believe many more victims never report incidents of sexual assault.
Here’s more about the alleged incident:
Fort Walton Beach man accused of sexually assaulting 12-year-old girl: Okaloosa Co. Sheriffwww.youtube.com
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