KANE COUNTY, Utah — Officials with the Kane County Sheriff's Office say they have arrested a 27-year-old Arizona man after he allegedly kidnapped a 12-year-old girl from the state and abused her. Liam Wallace is now facing child kidnapping, obstruction of justice, and sexual abuse of a child charges.
According to court documents obtained by FOX 13 News, on New Year's Eve, a Kane County Deputy was notified of a reported abduction of a twelve-year-old girl from the Goodyear Police Department. Investigators had pinged the suspect's phone which indicated he was near Big Water Utah.
The suspect was reported to have been driving a 2004 Kenworth Truck with the words, "White Owl," on the side.
Deputies would search for the vehicle finding a semi-truck with a box trailer parked on Highway 89. When officials approached the vehicle they confirmed that "White Owl" was written on the side.
The deputy who found the vehicle knocked on the driver's side door and a man exited the sleeper area of the truck before rolling down the window. The man confirmed to police that he was Liam Wallace but lied to officers that he was alone in the truck. When deputies asked to search the truck Liam admitted that there was someone else in the vehicle, although he claimed that the other person was 19 years old.
Liam was put in a deputy's vehicle and told officers that he was taking a load from Phoenix to Salt Lake City.
Deputies went back to the semi-truck and found a young woman in the sleeper area. The victim gave detectives a fake name and age before they showed her pictures of the missing girl and she admitted that it was her.
Deputies reported to Arizona officials that they had found the missing girl and arranged for her family to come pick her up.
Officers asked Liam for consent to search his phone which he refused. The victim also asked questions about a warrant for the cell phone and admitted to officers that if they did search the phone they would find messages between them.
The victim also disclosed to authorities that she had left with Liam the previous Friday and went to Vegas with him. She also admitted to the pair having physical contact in the truck and that they had thrown her phone off a bridge so it couldn't be tracked.
