Canton man accused of assaulting 14-year-old who missed the bus
Raymond Sookram booking photo (Credit: Cherokee County Sheriff's Office)
CHEROKEE COUNTY, Ga. - A 42-year-old man is being held without bond after high-tech license plate readers helped detectives track down a suspect accused of luring a missing teenager into his truck and sexually assaulting her.
What we know:
A 14-year-old girl missed her school bus on Aug. 21 and tried walking to school along Hickory Road, according to the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office.
A man driving a large truck pulled over, coaxed her inside under the pretense of offering a ride, and took her to a location in Canton where he sexually assaulted her before dropping her off near her school, deputies said.
Detectives with the Cherokee Sheriff’s Office Real Time Intelligence Center used automated license plate reader technology to match the victim's description to a vehicle.
Investigators executed a search warrant at the suspect's home Thursday morning and arrested Raymond Sookram, 42, of Canton.
He is charged with aggravated child molestation, trafficking a person for sexual servitude and interference with custody, according to the sheriff's office.
Sookram remains in custody at the Cherokee County Adult Detention Center without bond.
Detectives have not announced a formal court date for his preliminary hearing.
What we don't know:
Officials have not released the specific location in Canton where the alleged assault occurred. Authorities have also not made public the exact license plate details or make and model of the truck captured by the surveillance cameras.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from the Cherokee Sheriff's Office, which explained how detectives used automated license plate readers and search warrants to identify and arrest the suspect.