COLUMBUS – Columbus police are warning parents about teens meeting others online after a 14-year-old West Side girl went missing and was found in the company of a man she met on the internet and who was planning to take her to Colorado.
Sherrie MacKenzie and Cleven William Smash were found Thursday before they were able to leave Columbus and Sherrie was taken home, according to Sgt. Scott LeRoy of the Exploited Children Unit.
The 20-year-old Smash, of Colorado Springs, Colo., is facing charges of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor and pandering obscenity involving a minor, LeRoy said.
This case is another reminder to parents of the dangers young people face on the internet and to monitor their children’s online activities, he said.
Sherrie began communicating with Smash online in 2019 and LeRoy says Smash showed up unexpectedly at her home this month.
Sherrie was reported missing by her parents on Wednesday and police issued an alert for Sherrie and Smash.
The two were located and taken into custody in downtown Columbus, near the Greyhound bus station on E. Town Street, Thursday by patrol officers they were apparently preparing to return to Colorado, LeRoy said.
During questioning by detectives in the Special Victim’s Bureau, LeRoy says it was determined that “several unlawful acts had occurred between the juvenile victim and the suspect.”
The suspect was charged with unlawful sexual conduct with a minor and pandering obscenity involving a minor and more charges are expected, LeRoy said.
The investigation continues and the case is expected to be presented to the Franklin County Grand Jury.