A man from Texas was sentenced to 35 years in federal prison for having kidnapped a 13 -year -old girl in San Antonio, leading her to California, threatening her with a firearm and sexually assaulting her before her arrest at Long Beach, said The authorities.
His rescue of his liver, now 63 years old, took place on July 9, 2023, outside a laundromat on East 10th Street in Long Beach.
The girl scribbled the words “Help me!” In red pen on a piece of torn paper while sitting in a Silver Nissan Sentra, according to the American lawyer’s office for the California central district. Someone who goes through a call for help and called on the police, said officials. When the police arrived, she put the word “help” and they removed it from the car.
Steven Robert Sablan, from Cleburne, Texas, pleaded guilty in January 2024 for kidnapping. He has been in police custody since the incident, the authorities said. He was also ordered to pay $ 1,158 in return.
“The 35 -year -old sentence guarantees that this defendant will not have the possibility of victimizing children,” said acting. Joseph T. McNally in a press release. “There is nothing as important as protecting our young people. I congratulate our federal partners and premises to apply the law for their efforts to ensure justice here. »»
Sablan said he had kidnapped the victim – who told him that she was 13 years old – in San Antonio and led her to Long Beach, using a firearm to keep her under control, according to the press release.
The girl was sexually assaulted during the trip to California.
“(Sablan) violently removed a child and assaulted him sexually on several occasions by driving her thousands of kilometers from her house,” said prosecutors in a memorandum of sentencing. “And while (Sablan) spent days mistreating her for her own pleasure, her parents agonized on their disappeared child, fearing the worst. The worst was not far from reality. »»
California Daily Newspapers
