A 23-year-old Sarasota man was arrested on May 20 for lewd and lascivious battery against a 15-year-old girl he met on Snapchat, according to a Sarasota Police Department press release.
Police said Carson Smith met the girl on Snapchat in March, and after communicating on the popular social media app, Smith picked up the girl on four different occasions at a Venice gas station.
He originally told the 15-year-old girl he was 18, according to police.
The victim told investigators that Smith would pick her up and take her to his downtown Sarasota apartment. He offered the victim alcohol and she declined, and he repeatedly told the victim “I don’t want to get in trouble with any parents or the law,” police said.
In April, Smith picked up the victim for the last time, according to police, and took her to his apartment, where police said he had sex with her.
Smith, who is facing a felony charge, was released on bond from the Sarasota County Jail on May 22.
The investigation remains active, and detectives believe there may be additional victims.
If you have any information regarding this case, please contact Sarasota Police Department Detective Angela Cox at Angela.Cox@SarasotaFL.gov or call 941-263-6075. You can also remain anonymous and call Crime Stoppers of Sarasota County at 941-366-TIPS (8477).
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This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota man accused of sex crime after Snapchat messages
Reporting by Chris Anderson, Sarasota Herald-Tribune / Sarasota Herald-Tribune
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