A missing 11-year-old girl was rescued in Pennsylvania after authorities say they were able to find her location thanks to her iPad’s geolocation.
Pennsylvania state troopers were notified of the missing child on Sunday, who was last seen riding her bike towards Youngwood in western Pennsylvania, the Westmoreland District Attorney’s Office said in a statement.
Authorities arrived on the scene and found the girl’s bicycle near a gas station, where a bloodhound team picked up the child’s scent.
The child was found later that day, and police arrested 43-year-old Keith Lilliock, charging him with luring a child into a motor vehicle and interference with the custody of children, authorities said.
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iPad leads to child rescue
Investigators on the scene learned the child had an iPad with them and were able to ping the geolocation of the iPad. When authorities pinged it, it showed the iPad was at a home near Latrobe, about 10 miles east of Youngwood.
Authorities arrived and discovered the girl at the home and arrested Lilliock on Monday.
What happened?
The girl told police she was trying to ride her bicycle to Pittsburgh to see her sister when she took a break at the gas station where she was last seen, the district attorney’s office said.
She then walked to a nearby Dollar General, where she was confronted by Lilliock. He told the child he would drive her where she was headed once he closed the store for the night, authorities said. Surveillance video seen by troopers showed Lilliock and the child speaking for over 20 minutes.
Police said Lilliock drove the girl to his house, where he went inside and left her in the car for five minutes, before she said he touched her.
“The victim told police Lilliock rubbed her leg and touched her stomach area under her shirt before she asked him to take her to a friend’s house in Latrobe,” authorities said.
When asked by authorities, Lilliock admitted to offer the girl a ride by denied touching her, the district attorney’s office said.
Lilliock was denied bail and is currently at the Westmoreland County Prison.
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