AUSTIN (KXAN) — A 19-year-old Round Rock man was arrested and charged with a first-degree felony offense of Aggravated Kidnapping after police say he attempted to abduct a 10-year-old girl in northwest Travis County.
Police were able to use DNA and a geofencing search warrant to identify Logan Patrick Montgomery, 19, as the alleged suspect to the incident near FM 620 and Wilson Parke Avenue, according to an Austin Police Department arrest affidavit.
In the middle of May, the affidavit says Montgomery saw the victim riding her bike in a wooded area behind a neighborhood. Police say Montgomery was standing on the trail when he asked the victim to help search for his lost cat.
After looking for the cat for a short period of time, the victim told police that Montgomery distracted her by pointing to a dark-colored car parked near the dead-end of the trail. Then, he grabbed the victim by the waist with one hand and covered her mouth with the other hand, carrying her back toward a tree line, the affidavit says.
Police say Montgomery then slipped on a steep decline, allowing the victim to get out of his grasp. The victim turned and walked away before running back to her bike and going home, the affidavit says.
After interviews with the victim and her parents, police were able to identify a DNA profile on the victim’s shorts once it was revealed the victim’s clothes hadn’t been washed since the day of the incident, the affidavit says.
The DNA didn’t meet the requirement for the combined DNA Index System, which may be used to help identify the suspect, but the DNA could be used for a direct comparison if a suspect is identified, according to the affidavit.
Using a geofence search warrant to Google, police were able to eliminate most devices in the area on the day of the alleged abduction. However, one device was identified as a potential suspect as it stayed in the mapped out area for the specified time period. The device was linked back to a Round Rock address and an email address connected with Montgomery, the affidavit says.
A search warrant to Montgomery’s Google account linked his device to the neighborhood and wooded area around the time of the alleged abduction, the affidavit says.
The affidavit says on Friday, July 2, police detained Montgomery to execute a DNA search warrant. Montgomery asked police why his DNA was needed. Police asked if the suspect was willing to go back to an office to discuss the warrant while stating that he wasn’t under arrest.
Back at the office, Montgomery initially denied any connection to the alleged kidnapping. However, after police explained the cell phone data from the area and asked him about a DNA link to the victim’s shorts, Montgomery confirmed the victim’s account of the incident, the affidavit says.
Montgomery was booked into Travis County jail at 12:04 a.m. Saturday. He is being held on a $450,000 bond.
Attorney information for Montgomery hasn’t been listed as of Sunday. KXAN will update this story with more information as it becomes available.
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