
Suspect arrested in case of missing Utah teen
By By Brady Mccombs
Topics: From the Wires, News
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A 55-year-old Utah man has been arrested in the disappearance of a teenage girl last week that set off a massive search involving 1,000 volunteers in freezing temperatures.
The teenager — 13-year-old Brooklyn Gittins — was without her shoes or a coat when she crawled out of her bedroom window at her suburban Herriman home on Jan. 8. She called her grandmother two days later and officers later found her uninjured at a Wal-Mart store.
Police arrested Angel Garcia of Draper on Wednesday at about 7:30 p.m. He was booked on suspicion of child kidnapping, harboring a runaway, obstructing justice and endangering a child, Salt Lake County Sheriff Jim Winder said.
Garcia told police that an upset Gittins called him and he came to pick her up and then allowed her to stay in his house and sleep in his bed for two days. Garcia knew about the search, and hid the teen in his bedroom when police came to his house, Winder said.
Police do not believe there was any sexual assault.
Whether the teen stayed with Garcia willingly is irrelevant, Winder said at a Wednesday night news conference. Because of Gittins’ age, she’s considered a victim of a crime, the sheriff said, according to KSL-TV.
A charging document from the Unified Police Department states that Gittins used a phone given to her by Garcia to call him after she climbed out of her window.
During the second night at Garcia’s house in Draper, the girl heard a knock and heard police asking about her. She went to hide in the bedroom while Garcia answered the door, the document said.
After Garcia denied having the girl, he drove her to a nearby shopping center and dropped her off to hide in a ditch for several hours. She was still wearing a T-shirt and pajamas with no shoes or jacket in the cold.
Garcia later picked her up and took her back to his house. Gittens then called her grandmother and arranged to be picked up at a Wal-Mart. Police located her after the grandmother contacted police.
The two-day search covered 17 square miles in the area near Gittins’ home. The taxpayer cost of the search hasn’t yet been calculated, Unified Police spokesman Lt. Justin Hoyal said.
When police interviewed Garcia this week, he told them that he saw the search on television and even talked about it with a neighbor. He didn’t explain why he hid the girl when police came to his house, and then took her to a ditch.
Winder said Gittins and Garcia knew each other through common friends, KSL-TV reported.
Gittins hasn’t returned to school, the sheriff said. Her grandfather, Craig Hiller, said she was “very subdued” over the weekend.
“I’m sure (she’s) just trying to figure out what to do, being a 13-year-old girl,” Hiller said, according to KSL-TV. “She’s just kind of keeping to herself at this time.”
The case has been turned over to the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office to determine if formal charges will be filed against Garcia.
You Might Also Like
More Related Stories
-
Five easy steps for becoming a rape apologist
-
How Obamacare shortchanges low-wage workers
-
Hackers replace Brazil World Cup website with protest footage
-
Billion-dollar bioterror detection program under new scrutiny
-
GOP's war on women has a new face: Marsha Blackburn
-
War against Issa heats up, as Cummings releases IRS transcript
-
São Paulo anchors Brazilian protests
-
No, Brazilian riots are not an "overreaction" to fare hikes
-
Hacktivists strike north of the border
-
House hearing in celebration of NSA spying
-
Texas councilwoman outraged over billboard featuring gay couple
-
Miss Utah gives wonderfully succinct answer to question about women and work
-
GOP lawmaker: Extreme abortion ban justified because of masturbating fetuses
-
US begins peace talks with Taliban
-
Ray Kelly, who oversaw secret Muslim spying, slams NSA secrecy
-
Reputed Mafia captain tip behind new Hoffa body search
-
Gitmo "indefinite detainees" revealed
-
Pentagon to begin training women for elite combat roles by 2015
-
Unions give boost to Turkish protest movement
-
Charles Saatchi cautioned over assault on wife
-
Protests explode across Brazil
Featured Slide Shows
Gripping photos: The people of the Turkey protests (slideshow)
close X- Share on Twitter
- Share on Facebook
- Thumbnails
- Fullscreen
- 1 of 11
- Previous
- Next
-
The protests take on a festive element as police forces move out of the park and square. Wearing a gas mask, this young man dances to traditional Turkish music in front of Taksim Square’s Ataturk Monument.
-
In Gezi Park since March 31st, this protester, originally caught off-guard by the Government’s teargas and water cannons, went out and bought a Russian army mask from WWII, preparing for what was to come.
-
This rambunctious boy seems to be enjoying the chaos. After taking this picture he threw a stone at the already destroyed building in the background.
-
Forming a line, the police face off directly with protesters in Taksim Square. After a while, they retreated and there was a general cheer – a back-and-forth dance that has been common since the beginning of this protest.
-
An elderly woman in Gezi Park reads the news. The tent community occupying the park was violently destroyed on June 16th.
-
Many different groups had set up booths to promote their cause in Taksim Square and Gezi Park. Standing in front of one, this man waves his flag while posing with conviction.
-
Many home-remedies are used to minimize the effects of tear gas. This woman has put a milky solution on her face, removing her mask after the tear gas dissipated. Before sunrise, the police came again for another round of teargasing.
-
People capitalize on the uprising -- selling flags, beer, gas masks, sky lanterns and spray paint to name just a few of the popular items.
-
On Monday morning, June 11, the police execute a strong offensive. Many plain-clothed police officers, like the ones seen here, clash with protesters in the side streets away from the main stand-off in Taksim.
-
The authorities seem to be most aggressive in the night, pushing protesters away from the square and park. After being teargassed this young woman catches her breath with other protesters on Siraselviler Street.
-
Recent Slide Shows
-
Gripping photos: The people of the Turkey protests (slideshow)
-
The week in 10 pics
-
Photos: Turmoil and tear gas in Instanbul's Gezi Park - Slideshow
-
10 summer food festivals worth the pit stop
-
- Share on Twitter
- Share on Facebook
- Thumbnails
- Fullscreen
- 1 of 11
- Previous
- Next
-
The week in 10 pics
-
10 summer food festivals worth the pit stop
-
The week in 10 pics
-
The week in 10 pics
-
9 amazing drive-in movie theaters still standing
-
The week in 10 pics
-
The week in 10 pics
-
The week in 10 pics
-
The week in 10 pics
-
The week in 10 pics
-
The week in 10 pics
-
Netflix's April Fools' Day categories
-
The week in 10 pics
-
The week in 10 pics
-
The week in 10 pics
Related Videos
More Related Stories
-
Five easy steps for becoming a rape apologist
-
How Obamacare shortchanges low-wage workers
-
Hackers replace Brazil World Cup website with protest footage
-
Billion-dollar bioterror detection program under new scrutiny
-
GOP's war on women has a new face: Marsha Blackburn
-
War against Issa heats up, as Cummings releases IRS transcript
-
São Paulo anchors Brazilian protests
-
No, Brazilian riots are not an "overreaction" to fare hikes
-
Hacktivists strike north of the border
-
House hearing in celebration of NSA spying
-
Texas councilwoman outraged over billboard featuring gay couple
-
Miss Utah gives wonderfully succinct answer to question about women and work
-
GOP lawmaker: Extreme abortion ban justified because of masturbating fetuses
-
US begins peace talks with Taliban
-
Ray Kelly, who oversaw secret Muslim spying, slams NSA secrecy
-
Reputed Mafia captain tip behind new Hoffa body search
-
Gitmo "indefinite detainees" revealed
-
Pentagon to begin training women for elite combat roles by 2015
-
Unions give boost to Turkish protest movement
-
Charles Saatchi cautioned over assault on wife
-
Protests explode across Brazil
Most Read
-
Why Sarah Palin actually matters again Joan Walsh
-
Lynda Obst: Hollywood's completely broken Lynda Obst
-
GOP plan to appeal to millennials: "Make abortion funny" Alex Seitz-Wald
-
To my daughter on Father's Day: Sorry I used to be a sexist Mo Elleithee
-
Why didn't anyone help? Mary Elizabeth Williams
-
The best of Tumblr porn Tracy Clark-Flory
-
Study: Reading novels makes us better thinkers Tom Jacobs, Pacific Standard
-
Rahm Emanuel is losing control of his city Mark Guarino
-
Jon Stewart who?: John Oliver's "Daily Show" is almost too good Willa Paskin
-
The most popular Tumblr porn Tracy Clark-Flory

Popular on Reddit
links from salon.com

2941 points2942 points2943 points | 414 comments

239 points240 points241 points | 5 comments

53 points54 points55 points | 18 comments


Comments
0 Comments