Suspect in Abduction of Girl, 4, Also Harmed Others, Police Say

Man Touched 3 Children at Laurel Church, Left Another on Road Miles Away

A man who abducted a 4-year-old girl from a Laurel church and sexually assaulted her last week also assaulted three others on the church grounds, police said yesterday.

Three girls, ages 6, 9 and 13, were "touched inappropriately" in the hallway of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Contee Road while their mothers held a meeting in a conference room, according to Jim Collins, a Laurel Police Department spokesman.

Police said the man then took a 4-year-old girl out of the church, drove her to several locations Wednesday and sexually assaulted her. A passerby spotted the girl about 30 minutes later near the intersection of Old Gunpowder and Van Dusen roads, about two miles from the church.

Several boys were playing in the hall as well, including a teenager who police hope will provide a clearer picture of what happened. None of the boys had direct contact with the suspect, police said.

Collins said the man's presence did not arouse suspicion in the girls because he gained their trust by chatting casually with them.

"This person walked into the church as a very nice, pleasant person who won the confidence of these children," he said. "Then he started talking to them about touching and feeling."

The mother of the 4-year-old noticed her daughter was missing when she emerged from the meeting. While she was searching meeting rooms and hallways, Prince George's County police called to report picking up the girl, who had told an officer that her mother was at the church.

Laurel police describe the suspect as a light-skinned black man between 20 and 30 and about 6 feet tall. He was wearing a red shirt and bluejeans, and was believed to be driving a red Jeep or black compact car with a spoiler.