DHS: Suspect accused of kidnapping 11-year-old entered U.S. illegally from Honduras in 2019
Prosecutors say the 23-year-old Haledon man threatened to share photos of the girl before luring her from her home and sexually assaulting her.
More Stories
A Passaic County man accused of kidnapping and sexually assaulting an 11-year-old girl in Asbury Park entered the United States illegally from Honduras in 2019 when he was a teen, according to a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security.
Adolfo A. Cruz-Garcia, 23, of Haledon, faces charges including aggravated sexual assault, kidnapping, aggravated sexual extortion, sexual assault and endangering the welfare of a child.
Prosecutors said Cruz-Garcia met the girl through social media on Oct. 2 and, despite knowing her age, solicited photos of her in a state of undress and offered her money in exchange for sexual acts.
Several hours later, Cruz-Garcia allegedly went to the girl's home and threatened to share the partially nude photos with her family and friends unless she came outside.
Investigators said he lured the girl into his vehicle, sexually assaulted her multiple times and later dropped her off near her home.
Cruz-Garcia was arrested Tuesday near his home and taken to the Monmouth County Correctional Institution.
A DHS spokesperson told News 12 that Cruz-Garcia entered the United States illegally from Honduras in 2019 when he was a teenager.
A detention hearing is tentatively scheduled for Monday, Oct. 26. Prosecutors are seeking to keep him in custody while the case proceeds.
