Woman sexually assaulted on Grand Strand beach after waking up to sunrise

NORTH MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WMBF) – A family vacation on the Grand Strand turned into a nightmare for an 18-year-old woman.

North Myrtle Beach police were called to the beach in the 2700 block of South Ocean Boulevard at 6 a.m. on May 26 for a possible assault in progress.

The caller said he was talking to his 18-year-old girlfriend via FaceTime when an unknown man approached her. The caller then described hearing a man kissing and pushing his girlfriend, after which she was able to text him to call the police.

An officer arrived and asked the suspect, Maurice Moore, 38, of Warsaw, North Carolina, and the victim how they knew each other, and Moore said they had just met.

The officer then questioned the woman alone and she said, “I was just raped,” a police report states.

The Tennessee woman told the officer that she was on vacation with her family, about a block away from the alleged assault. The victim got up alone that morning and walked to the beach to watch the sunrise.

Moore then came over and began speaking to the victim, who saw something attached to his right ankle. Moore said it was his gun, which he always carries with him, the police report states.

As the victim’s fear grew, Moore ordered her not to move and then abused her “using severe force,” the report said.

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Police arrested Moore and took him to the J. Reuben Long Detention Center on May 26.

He was still there at the time of this writing. He is charged with kidnapping, first-degree sexual abuse and possession of a weapon during a violent crime.

The victim was taken to the hospital for a CSC kit.

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