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Subscribe to RSSA 19-year-old Santa Clarita man was charged with 29 criminal counts alleging sex crimes against 14 girls between the ages of 12 and 16.
Michael Downs of Valencia was arraigned in San Fernando Superior Court Tuesday on the multiple felony counts, a court clerk told the Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
Following a female minor’s report of being sexually assaulted by the suspect earlier in December, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s Special Victims Bureau began an investigation.
Read the original story on NBCLosAngeles.com
Detectives said they identified an additional 13 female teenage victims who were allegedly sexually assaulted by Downs.
Downs met the victims at social events, public places and on Facebook throughout 2011, according to a press release by the sheriff’s department. He allegedly gained his victims’ confidence by giving names of other teens he claimed he was friends with on Facebook.
“For over a week we have found new victims every day as we investigate these crimes,” Lt. Carlos Marquez of the Special Victims Bureau in the statement.
Downs was arrested Dec. 15 and was booked at Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station.
He is being held in Los Angeles County jail on $1.8 million bail and is scheduled to appear in court Jan. 11 for his continued arraignment, the Signal reported.
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Makes you wonder if they defriended him afterward. Maybe he thought they were 18, not like he'd find it okay to ask for ID. A rather high bail was set.
Guess the guy was a big fan of Mark Zuckerburg's for making his job so much easier
Hang him up by his ..... oh, never mind
Send him to Iran...too bad millions of criminal AMericans will not be granted visas.