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Saline man faces charges of rape, endangerment |
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Friday, 03 July 2009 |
A Hensley man has been arrested on charges of rape and endangering the welfare of a minor, Saline County authorities confirmed today.
Stephen Bradford, 56, is accused in conjunction with an alleged prostitution scheme arranged by the teenager’s mother. He is being held in the Saline County Detention Center.
The victim, a teenage girl, allegedly told authorities her mother prostituted her to Bradford for money including cash for a pickup truck and a down payment on a house.
The mother also has been arrested on a felony charge of permitting the abuse of a minor. The arrest occurred at her home, investigators said.
The abuse reportedly began at the time the girl was 8. She told investigators that the abuse continued into her teen years and that the sexual activity eventually was traded for prescription painkillers, cocaine, money and a car.
Bradford’s bail was set at $100,000 on Thursday.Saline County Detective Gary Robertson stated in a report that the girl’s mother told the suspect she would contact police and tell them he had raped her if he didn’t pay her.
The situation came to attention of local authorities earlier in the week when the girl crashed her car into a ditch on U.S. 167 near East End. The Arkansas State Police trooper who investigated charged the girl with driving while intoxicated.
While she was in custody, the girl reportedly revealed the abuse, claiming that her mother sent her to Bradford’s home to have sex for money.
She told authorities that Bradford had raped her while she was home sick from school.
The victim and her younger sister are now in foster care, an arrangement that will continue depending on the outcome of the investigation.
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