Five felony counts have been filed by the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office against Charles James, 30, from the Antelope Valley. James contacted local authorities on Wednesday after learning that law enforcement were searching for him, said Sgt. Brian Hudson, of the sheriff’s department’s special victims bureau. James was tracked down to Greenville, S.C., where he was staying at a relative’s home on vacation. Local authorities made the arrest there. Hudson stressed that, “He was located as a result of all the media attention this case received.”
James is suspected of following the 14-year-old girl on the morning of Dec. 13th as she walked to school, authorities said. According to authorities, the girl noticed that she was being followed by a man and crossed the street. That is when James repeated her actions and continued to follow her and soon afterwards grabbed the girl and dragged her into the bushes where she was ultimately attacked. After the assault the suspect ran away and the victim went to the nearest home where she contacted Lancaster authorities. She was then treated and released at a local hospital.
Hudson claims that hard work of the detective on the case is what led authorities to believe that James is responsible for this crime. James is currently waiting to be extradited from South Carolina to the Antelope Valley, Hudson said.
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James could be charged with a variety of charges, including rape, in violation of Penal Code section 261. Pursuant to Penal Code section 264(a), rape is normally punishable by a three, six or eight years in state prison. However, rape of a child carries greater punishments. Rape of a minor who is under 14 years of age, is punishable by 9, 11 or 13 years state prison, pursuant to Penal Code section 264(c)(1). Rape of a child who is 14 years of age or older is punishable by 7, 9 or 11 years state prison pursuant to Penal Code section 264(c)(2).