“Help me.” Kidnapped girl was sexually abused, then someone saw her sign, say police in California

A 13-year-old girl was near a bus stop in Texas when a man approached her and ordered her to get into his vehicle at gunpoint, authorities said.

According to a July 20 Long Beach Police press release, she was sexually assaulted while the man was driving her from San Antonio to Long Beach, California.

Three days after the abduction, the teenager was seen in a vehicle in a Long Beach parking lot on July 9, authorities said, holding a piece of paper that read “Help me.”

Good Samaritans immediately called 911, the press release said.

Officers arrived at the scene around 10:20 a.m. Sunday and arrested Steven Robert Sabalan, 61, of Cleburne, Texas, authorities said. Cleburne is about 50 miles southwest of downtown Dallas.

“Investigators and the Sexual Assault Response Team responded immediately and began investigating the incident,” the press release states. “During their investigation, investigators gathered sufficient information to confirm that the victim had been sexually assaulted while the suspect was transporting her across the state line from San Antonio to Long Beach. In the suspect’s vehicle, investigators also found a replica firearm that resembled a semi-automatic pistol.”

Sabalan was booked into the Long Beach Jail on charges of kidnapping, lewd and lascivious acts with a child and fugitive from justice.

The Ministry of Children and Families has taken custody of the teenager, authorities said.

An FBI-led investigation is underway.

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