A Texas man who kidnapped a 13-year-old lady in San Antonio and sexually assaulted her a number of occasions whereas driving her to Southern California final yr pleaded responsible to a federal kidnapping cost Friday as a part of a plea settlement, the US Legal professional’s Workplace for the Central District of California mentioned.
Steven Robert Sablan, 62, kidnapped the lady at gunpoint on or about July 6, 2023, in San Antonio and “engaged in sexual exercise” along with her whereas driving her to Lengthy Seaside, California, the plea settlement states.
“On the time of the crime, Sablan had no authorized custody or familial relationship to the sufferer,” the US Legal professional’s Workplace for the Central District of California mentioned in a information launch.
Throughout the kidnapping, Sablan threatened the kid, saying, “For those who don’t get within the automobile with me, I’m going to harm you,” according to court documents.
The kid was rescued on July 9, 2023, after Sablan went right into a laundromat in Lengthy Seaside, California, and the lady held up a “Assist Me!” signal from inside Sablan’s parked automobile. An excellent Samaritan referred to as 911 after recognizing the signal, and Lengthy Seaside cops mentioned on the time the lady was “visibly emotional and distressed” once they arrived.
Sablan faces a compulsory minimal sentence of 20 years in jail and a most sentence of life imprisonment, the US Legal professional’s workplace mentioned within the information launch. He will even be required to register as a intercourse offender when launched from jail, the plea settlement says.
CNN has reached out to Sablan’s lawyer for remark. Sablan is scheduled to be sentenced on October 25.
CNN’s Aya Elamroussi and Cheri Mossburg contributed to this report.
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