A 15-year-old Texas girl was rescued on Christmas Day after being forced into a maroon pickup at knifepoint. Her father tracked her phone using parental controls and located the vehicle in a secluded, partially wooded area about two miles from their home, then freed her and returned home to call deputies. Police arrested 23-year-old Giovanni Rosales Espinoza without incident; he faces charges of aggravated kidnapping and indecency with a child and is being held with no bond. The teen is recovering with her family and the investigation remains ongoing.
Father Uses Phone Location To Rescue 15-Year-Old From Knifepoint Abduction On Christmas Day
A Texas teenager was rescued by her father after she was forced into a pickup truck at knifepoint on Christmas Day, Montgomery County authorities said.
Patrol deputies with the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office were called to a home at about 4:50 p.m. Thursday after the girl's family reported she had not returned from walking their dog, the agency said on social media. The girl's father used parental controls to track her cellphone and located it roughly two miles away in a "secluded, partially wooded area."
Father Locates And Frees Daughter
The father drove to the location and found his 15-year-old daughter and the family dog inside a maroon pickup truck with a man described by deputies as "partially nude." He helped his daughter exit the vehicle and brought her home, where they then contacted sheriff's deputies.
Investigation And Arrest
Investigators determined the male suspect had threatened the teenager with a knife. Witness descriptions and vehicle details allowed deputies to identify the driver as 23-year-old Giovanni Rosales Espinoza. Espinoza was taken into custody without incident and charged with aggravated kidnapping and indecency with a child. He is being held in the Montgomery County Jail with no bond, the sheriff's office said. The investigation is ongoing.
CBS affiliate KHOU reported the girl is recovering at home with her family. The family told KHOU they did not know the suspect and are thankful the teen is safe.
"Christmas is a day meant for joy, but this man chose to shatter that joy by targeting a child," Sheriff Wesley Doolittle wrote on social media. "I am incredibly proud of our deputies and detectives who worked tirelessly to ensure this dangerous predator was swiftly apprehended and is now off our streets."
Authorities continue to investigate and have not released additional details about the circumstances leading up to the abduction.
