Truck driver arrested after abducted 12-year-old found in cab of vehicle in Mississippi

Authorities have arrested a man in connection to the abduction of a 12-year-old girl from North Carolina who was found Wednesday by deputies in the cab of the man’s 18-wheeler at a Mississippi truck stop.

The Carroll County Sheriff’s Office issued a Wednesday press release stating deputies and FBI agents responded Tuesday to an alert regarding a missing and/or endangered 12-year-old Native American child from North Carolina.

The sheriff’s office said deputies were notified that the child might be at a truck stop in the Vaiden area, which is a little over 80 miles north of Jackson.

Upon arrival, FBI Agents and Carroll County deputies began searching vehicles at the 35/55 Truck Stop in Vaiden and discovered the girl in a cab of a semitruck.

Deputies identified the driver as 35-year-old Randy Donovan Taylor of Columbus, South Carolina.

See on other news: 8-year-old dies after being struck by school bus in Madison neighborhood. Child identified

According to the press release, authorities took Taylor into custody and booked him in the Carroll County Regional Correctional Facility. The sheriff’s office stated Taylor is facing a “multitude of charges” including federal, state and local in the “abduction and victimization of this child.”

Deputies said in Carroll County, Taylor is facing charges of possession of child pornography and lustful touching. Additional charges are expected from North Carolina to New Orleans and Vaiden and “possibly other points along the way.”

The sheriff’s office said the FBI and Mississippi Department of Child Protective Services are working together to return the child to her family.

See data here: These trends reflect the 2024 homicide victims in Jackson

“I want to thank the coalition of law enforcement agencies who worked together with us in returning this child to her family,” Carroll County Sheriff Clint Walker said. “Since her abduction on Sept. 29, the FBI has worked tirelessly trying to track and locate her along with many law enforcement agencies and officers, including but not limited to the Jackson Metro area, Intel Analysts, Mississippi Bureau of Investigation, Rankin County Sheriff’s Office, Madison County Sheriff’s Office and our agency.

“Parents, please, please, keep an eye on what your children are doing online on their phones, tablets, game systems and other devices. Evil comes right to their hands now through technology. This is a good example of how quickly a sexual predator can target, locate, abduct and victimize a child. Don’t think that it can’t happen to your family. This is very common today and usually does not have a good ending. Only by the grace of God was this child rescued from a situation that could have ended in death or a life of sex trafficking. Be vigilant with your children and keep your eyes open for predators.”

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Man arrested after abducted 12-year-old girl found at MS truck stop