A New Jersey man is behind bars after he allegedly lured an 11-year-old girl off the street and into his car before kidnapping her, the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office announced.
Raquan Folk, 29, is charged with first-degree kidnapping, second-degree luring a child and third-degree endangering the welfare of a child via sexual conduct, Prosecutor Raymond Santiago said in a statement Monday.
Folk is accused of pulling up next to the young girl, who was walking along Ridge Avenue in Asbury Park, in a white Kia and convincing her to get into the car with him at approximately 5:30 p.m. on May 30, according to a joint investigation with the MCPO Special Victims Bureau and Asbury Park police.
Once she was in the car, he allegedly drove to neighboring Neptune Township, stopped the car and told the girl to take off her clothes.
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The girl asked Folk if she could use a bathroom, according to Santiago's statement, and he allegedly drove to a service station.
Once stopped at the service station, she reportedly ran from the car, flagged down a passerby and was taken to the Neptune Township Police Department.
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Folk was taken into custody without incident on Thursday and transported to the Monmouth County Correctional Institution, where he is awaiting a detention hearing with the county's Superior Court.
The state is filing a motion to keep him in custody as the case against him moves forward, Santiago said.
The prosecutor's office is encouraging anyone with additional information on this incident, or Folk's activities in general, to contact MCPO detective Kayla Santiago at 800-533-7443.
