14-year-old arrested for sexually abusing an older woman

A 14-year-old was arrested and charged Monday with sexually abusing an elderly woman, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release. The incident occurred June 9 in Reddick, where a 91-year-old woke up to find a person in her home being attacked and sexually assaulted. “I told everyone last week that we would find the person responsible, and we did,” Marion County Sheriff Billy Woods said. “I’m very proud of the hard work my detectives and forensics team did on this case to bring it to a quick conclusion. This type of unimaginable violence still shocks me after all my years in law enforcement.” The sheriff’s office cited DNA evidence that allowed forensics to identify the suspect. During an interview, the juvenile suspect admitted to entering the victim’s home before beating and sexually assaulting her, the sheriff’s office said. Woods added, “The community of Reddick has shown resilience and support for us and their community throughout all of this. I also want to thank all of the citizens who have given me tips and leads on this case. It was a shock that someone would commit such an act against a 91-year-old, but it is truly disturbing when we see the young age of the man arrested. While I firmly believe he should be held accountable for his crime, as a father my sympathies go out to his family. Hopefully his arrest will result in him receiving help that will prevent future acts like this from happening.”