The Virginia man accused of running off to Washington, D.C. last week with a 13-year-old Main Line girl he met on the Internet allegedly assaulted the girl during the ordeal.
Ashley Hareford, 20, remained behind bars Monday night unable to post $1 million bail. He is due back in court Thursday.
Hareford reportedly admitted to investigators that he engaged in sexual acts with the Radnor girl in a wooded area near the King of Prussia Mall before leaving the area Tuesday.
"He utilized her to engage in sexual acts upon him," said Delaware County District Attorney Jack Whelan.
Hareford, who hails from Grottoes, Va., was arrested Tuesday when he and the teen got off a bus in Washington D.C. He waived his arraignment last week and was extradited Monday to Delaware County to face charges of statutory sexual assault, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse with a minor, aggravated sexual assault, indecent assault and related counts, according to court records.
He could face up to 100 years behind bars if he is found guilty on all counts.
The father of the teenage girl says his daughter met Hareford online and had conversations with him. Investigators said they discovered an “inappropriate” picture in their online interaction, although it was not pornographic.
Local
Breaking news and the stories that matter to your neighborhood.
"Anytime you have a 20-year-old pursuing a 13-year-old on the Internet, that individual is a predator, period, end of story," said Radnor Police Chief Bill Colarulo.
Investigators want to know if any other child fell victim to Hareford.
"She trusted him and that was her first mistake," Whelan said. "And he certainly took advantage of her and he should have known better at his age that she was a 13-year-old girl... he did know that she was a 13-year-old."
