BECKHAM COUNTY, Okla. (KFOR) – Two people are locked up tonight after law enforcement says they kidnapped a 14-year-old Beckham County girl.
“I was holding my breath, quite honestly, the whole time that we were making entry into the truck,” said Sheriff Derek Manning, Beckham County Sheriff’s Office.
It was all hands on deck for the Beckham County Sheriff’s Office on Tuesday. They were working to track down a semi-truck holding a missing 14-year-old girl.
It all started with a phone call from the girl’s sibling.
“The little girl on the phone was 6-years-old. She called our office and told us that their older sister, who is 14 years old, was supposed to be babysitting them but they couldn’t find their sister,” Manning said.
Detectives then searched through the missing girl’s social media posts.
“They were able to learn during this that she had contact with an adult male from Michigan who was with a trucking company out of Mississippi,” Manning said.
With help from law enforcement in Mississippi, the trucking company released the GPS location on the truck. Which pinged at the Flying J truck stop, just south of Sayre.
“Pulled the male occupant and a female occupant out of the truck at gunpoint,” Manning said. “I don’t usually get that worked up but my heart was racing and I was shaky afterward.”
The girl was found hiding in the sleeper cab– unhurt.
Two suspects, an adult male and female, were taken into custody. The pair came from out of state.
Sheriff manning saying the male suspect also has a history of sexual assault.
“This was a grooming situation. This was very classic child predator behavior. This young lady had been groomed for several months, at least, by this man using social media,” Manning said.
The suspects were both taken into custody. Their identities are expected to be released after charges formally come down. They’re being held on complaints of child stealing and conspiracy.
