a day ago
Man accused of kidnapping, selling teen for sex indicted in Federal court
CROCKETT COUNTY, Texas () – A man accused of kidnaping a teenage girl, as well as her baby, and selling the girl for sex has been indicted in Federal court.
Devin Maurice Harmon was indicted for Transportation of a Minor with Intent to Engage in Criminal Sexual Activity and Tampering with a Witness and Victim during Federal court in Abilene Thursday morning.
Members of the Crockett County Sheriff's Office initially made contact with Harmon, the teen victim, and her 2-year-old son when they received a courtesy ride from deputies to their hotel after experiencing car trouble on I-10 in July 2024.
Court documents reveal an investigation began after marijuana was found in their vehicle, prompting detectives to search their hotel room as well.
Both Harmon and the victim were interviewed during the investigation, and the documents state that Harmon initially lied about the victim's identity then gave several conflicting stories as to how they met.
The child also indicted she was involved in a sexual relationship with Harmon and that the 2-year-old child could be his, so detectives took DNA swabs.
Detectives later learned the teenage victim had been listed on the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's database as a kidnapping/rape victim since 2023.
Harmon was interviewed again the next day, and the documents state that he eventually admitting to knowing the teenage victim was on the database and confirmed they had an ongoing sexual relationship and that the 2-year-old child could belong to him.
He also allegedly admitted to knowing she was underage, so he was arrested for Sexual Assault of a Child. Harmon was later charged with Tampering with a Witness after calls from jail showed he attempted to contact the victim in an attempt to get her to change her story more than 70 times.
In May 2025, the documents state DNA testing revealed the 2-year-old child did not belong to Harmon, which triggered the FBI to interview the teenage victim again.
During this interview, the documents state the teenage victim revealed she met Harmon on a public transportation bus after running away from home in 2022 and that he sexually assaulted her multiple times then began selling her to other men.
This victim claims she engaged in sex acts in exchange for money with more than 100 men in a 2-year period, and these exchanges were arranged by Harmon, who set up accommodations for hotels then took all of the money she made when she was done.
According to the documents, Harmon and the victim were on their way to Louisiana, where more prostitution was scheduled to take place.
No further information is available at this time.
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