VICTORVILLE, Calif. — A 15-year-old Arizona teen reported missing earlier this month has been rescued from Mexico after a 38-year-old man allegedly lured her to Tijuana.
Federal authorities say Daniel Navarro is facing charges of transporting a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity after investigators recovered messages allegedly exchanged between him and the Arizona girl.
The teenager was reported missing from California, where her family had been visiting for a summer vacation. She was found Monday in Mexico.
The crime details:
Navarro and the teen began messaging on social media on Feb. 8, after apparently meeting through the teen’s older “brother who had, in turn, met him through… Roblox,” arresting documents said.
Through a warrant, authorities got a hold of the extensive conversation between the pair.
Records said the teen explicitly told Navarro she was 14 years old and lived in Arizona. Detectives noted the conversation quickly turned “romantic” where he professed his love and discussed having sex so she would have his baby.
The girl “had never seen “Angel” because he refused to show his face. [He] only communicated through text or voice contact,” records said.
On the evening of her disappearance, Navarro and the teen had a conversation about her leaving with him, documents showed. The girl told him she wasn’t ready to leave, but Navarro allegedly told her “You made me promises. Remember to leave with me… what about making our baby.”
A couple of minutes later, records said Navarro messaged the teen “Juju is upset and can’t believe we drove all this way to hear your excuses.” About 20 minutes later, she left.
Court records indicate “Juju” is 20-year-old Julie Le, Navarro’s accomplice who police said worked with him to “produce underage girls” for him.
Authorities said phone records showed Le and Navarro exchanged screenshots of social media profiles “associated with apparent underage girls.”
Navarro instructed Le to message the teens in the profiles and tell them he was a friend, arrest documents said.
Navarro and Le, allegedly drove the 15-year-old to Mexico on July 1, the night before the girl’s scheduled quinceañera.
Ping information from both suspects’ phones shows that they traveled to Nipomo, CA at the time of the teen’s disappearance and then traveled to Mexico, making a stop at a gas station in Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, and Chula Vista.
On July 11, Mexican authorities recovered the 15-year-old missing teen from Navarro’s father’s home in Mexico. Detectives used the geolocation of pictures Le took of Navarro’s children in Mexico to locate the home, court records said.
Navarro and Le, both residents of California, were taken into custody earlier this week.
Arresting paperwork said Navarro had three Instagram accounts and communicated with other girls who said were 14 and 15 years old.
It’s alleged Navarro told another 15-year-old girl that he wanted her to have his baby, that he sent a photo of a penis to another 15-year-old teen and requested nude photos from multiple other 14 and 15-year-olds.
An affidavit states Navarro also used social media in an attempt to convince one of the missing teen’s relatives to run away with him.
Keeping your children safe
Around 80% of kids that go missing in the United States are first groomed online, said Cammy Bowker, the founder of Global Education Philanthropists, a world-class nonprofit that fights human trafficking through education on a global scale.
The pandemic exacerbated the problem according to Bowker. Just like businesses and schools changed tactics during 2020, predators found new ways to reach potential victims through social media.
That’s why she said online monitoring of teens’ accounts on social networks and video games, is key to prevention.
“Be that bad guy for a minute and say, ‘hey, I want to see what’s on your phone,” Bowker said. “A lot of cases can be prevented if they feel like they can talk to their parents.”
Bowker said she recommends parents have open conversations with their children about who they are communicating with and what they are doing online.
“If they sent a nude, ‘tell them, I can handle it. I’ll be upset, but let’s talk about it and figure out how we’re going to move forward,’” she said.
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