A 68-year-old man from Massachusetts has been arrested and charged with kidnapping and sexual assault after allegedly luring a child into his car and attacking her, according to the Webster Police Department.
Walter Fanion was taken into custody in Webster, Massachusetts, on Friday, facing charges of kidnapping, enticing a child under 16, and four counts of indecent assault and battery on a child under 14, police said in a statement.
The alleged victim, a juvenile girl whose age has not been disclosed, reported the assault to police on April 15. She told investigators that she was at Memorial Beach when a man with a dog “lured her inside his car.” Once inside, he allegedly covered her mouth when she tried to scream, as reported by Boston 25.
According to police, the man then drove the child to another location to drop off the dog he was with, and at some point during the drive, he allegedly assaulted her. During the incident, the man reportedly crossed state lines into Connecticut before eventually returning the child to her neighborhood, where she reported the attack to her grandmother.
The girl was able to provide police with key details about the suspect’s car, which led authorities to identify and track down Fanion. The police followed him for several days before arresting him, according to their statement.
Online court records did not list plea or attorney information as of Tuesday afternoon, leaving questions about Fanion’s defense or potential trial.
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or visit rainn.org for support and resources. If you’ve been a victim of sexual abuse, you can also text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to connect with a certified crisis counselor.
