TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

12-Year-Old Girl Recovering After Rape, Grandma Says

ADVERTISEMENT

By JOSH POLTILOVE | The Tampa Tribune

Published: March 30, 2009

Updated: 03/30/2009 05:01 pm

Kenneth Ross

A 12-year-old Bradenton girl is recovering after she left home over the weekend and was raped by a man 34 years older than her, the girl's family said at a news conference this afternoon.

"She is safe and resting and so happy to be home with her family," grandmother Carol Claar said.

The girl has appointments to meet with a psychiatrist, case manager and therapist to help her recover, Claar said.

The girl returned to her Bradenton home Sunday afternoon. She appeared unharmed and was laughing and smiling, Claar said. The grandmother said today, though, that she thinks the girl's attitude on Sunday was an act.

"I believe she was putting on a smile and that's what she thinks was expected of her," Claar said. "I believe her thoughts have been much more dark since then."

On Sunday night, Manatee County sheriff's deputies arrested Kenneth R. Ross, 46, of 3600 Lake Bayshore Drive. Ross has been charged with lewd and lascivious battery, giving alcohol to a minor and exposing a minor to harmful motion pictures.

Detectives say Ross gave the girl whiskey, watched pornographic movies with her and raped her.
Claar said she is relieved an arrest has been made. "This is one person who won't be able to do this again."

Relatives had feared the worst after the girl went missing after leaving home Saturday following an argument with her grandmother.

An Amber Alert was issued.

About 4:30 p.m. Sunday, the girl called her family and said she was at a Sarasota mall but didn't name the mall or say exactly where she was.

The girl ran out of her house in west Bradenton on Saturday morning wearing a gray sports bra and denim shorts. The 5-foot-3 sixth-grader was so upset she didn't stop to put on her shoes.

About 10:30 a.m., witnesses saw her get into a newer model red Jeep Cherokee with Florida tags, according to the sheriff's office.

On Sunday, Ross told the girl "not to tell anyone what had happened then he dropped her off by her house so then she walked home," an arrest report states.

Deputies say the girl didn't know Ross, who took her to several places, including his home, the mall and a store so she could get shoes, sheriff's spokesman Dave Bristow said.

On Sunday, investigators drove the girl to the area where she believed Ross' home was and she identified his Jeep, Bristow said.

Investigators conducted surveillance on Ross' home. Deputies said Ross came outside with several DVDs in his hands and told them he was planning to throw out pornography.

He later told deputies he had sex with the girl, an arrest report states.

Information from Tribune archives was used in this report. News Channel 8 reporter Natalie Shepherd contributed to this report. Reporter Josh Poltilove can be reached at (813) 259-7691.

Share this:

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT