A teenage girl in Fort Worth was handcuffed and beaten and another girl in Arlington was sexually assaulted in separate incidents recently by men they met online, police said.
Both alleged crimes point to the dangers of young girls meeting people on the internet, according to investigators.
In the Fort Worth case, a 16-year-old girl was working at a fast-food restaurant on Berry Street near University Drive when she received a text message on March 16 from a man she knew online as “Jose,” police said.
She met him in the parking lot and he invited her into his car where he asked her to close her eyes because he had a surprise for her, according to police.
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Several minutes later he pulled out a gun and handcuffed her, police said. A woman who had been hiding in the back seat then beat her with closed fists and stole her wallet.
Detectives used cell phone records and social media accounts to track down the suspects, police said.
Jose Alfredo Salaices, 18, and Ashley Denise Garcia, 20, were arrested in Houston on charges of aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon and aggravated kidnapping.
Salaices and Garcia bonded out of jail and could not be reached for comment.
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In the Arlington case, 42-year-old Grady Maurice Moffett was arrested last week on charges of online solicitation of a minor and sexual assault.
In court records, police said Moffett, who lived in Alabama, met a teenage girl under the age of 17 on TikTok.
Police began investigating this case on March 13 after the victim made an outcry.
The victim originally told police Moffett was a “friend” and a “good guy.”
The girl later admitted they had a sexual relationship, police said.
Text messages reviewed by detectives revealed sexually-explicit photographs and he referred to her as his “sexy wife” and “babe.”
Police obtained arrest warrants for Moffett for online solicitation of a minor, sexual assault of a child, and indecency with a child.
Moffett is currently being held in the Tarrant County jail on $80,000 bond.
