Two Arkansas men have admitted raping a 6-year-old girl after medical officials at a hospital determined the minor had contracted multiple sexually transmitted diseases, New York Post reported.
Besides confessing to raping the minor, prosecutors said the suspects, identified as Demarcus George, 27, and 33-year-old Mario Waters, also admitted sex-trafficking the girl. The suspects admitted to the said offenses during a hearing in a federal court last week.
The suspects reached a plea deal that would see them avoid an initially planned jury trial. The victim will also no longer have to testify as a result. George and Waters pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of the minor.
Prosecutors said the minor told an FBI forensic interviewer she had been raped by the two men after she was taken to the Arkansas Children’s Hospital on February 18 “due to symptoms that were later determined to be caused by several sexually transmitted diseases.”
Blood and urine samples that were subsequently taken from George and Waters ultimately determined the two men suffered the same sexually transmitted diseases the minor had contracted. “Both George and Waters admitted in court that they had sexual contact with the minor and were involved in trafficking her with others,” prosecutors said.
The minor was also able to describe where she was raped, telling investigators it happened in a “hotel room with a curtain in the middle of the room.” She also made mention of a “picture hanging on the wall in the hotel room.” Investigators were able to ultimately locate the hotel based on that information.
The hotel’s financial records also revealed the minor’s mother had booked a room with a credit card in 2018. The minor is no longer in her mother’s custody.
“The unspeakable crimes committed against this child remind us how vitally important it is to have law enforcement officers willing to investigate and put a stop to these horrific actions,” Acting United States Attorney Jonathan D. Ross said.
“These guilty pleas will spare the young victim from having to relive her experience on the witness stand at a trial. Our law enforcement partners work hard every day to protect children from this abuse, and our office will continue to aggressively pursue those who commit these deplorable crimes.”
The two men will be sentenced at a later date. They face up to life in prison.
