17-year-old accused stealing car, then raping the 12-year-old girl who was inside
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- A 17-year-old boy is accused of raping a 12-year-old girl who was inside the running car he stole, Philadelphia police say.
Police say DNA helped officers track down the suspect in what they call a "crime of opportunity."
It happened along Germantown and Erie Avenues around 9:30 p.m. last Friday in the Tioga-Nicetown neighborhood.
The 12-year-old girl was sleeping inside a running 2010 Ford Taurus when the suspect entered the vehicle and drove off.
A half-hour later, the girl was found near Broad Street and Roosevelt Boulevard. Police say the child told officers the suspect left her there after a sexual assault.
"She's going through the motions, the challenges, but I will say, she's very smart, very intelligent and one brave little girl," Captain Margo Alleyne-Parker said of the victim.
Investigators said a license plate reader spotted the vehicle on Monday, and the car was recovered in the 5400 block of Poplar Street.
Evidence that was described inside the vehicle at the time of the theft and assault was still inside and was also recovered at that time.
Police said they got a positive DNA hit on the items that were processed and analyzed from inside the vehicle, allegedly matching them to the 17-year-old.
That teen was picked up by police on Thursday and has been charged with rape, contact with minor and related offenses.
Police have not released his name due to his age. According to the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office, he will not be charged as an adult.
"If you have to jump out of your car to run into your home or a store at any point, any time, if there is someone in the backseat asleep, wake them up. If there is a child, take them with you. But please, also make sure you always turn your engine off. Make sure the ignition is off and your keys are with you and the doors are locked," Captain Alleyne-Parker said.
