Duson Police say a teenager reported missing for several weeks from Missouri was located at a motel in Duson on Thursday.
Duson Police Chief Kip Judice says that the Duson Police Department and Acadia Parish Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of an alleged sexual assault at the Duson Motel on Thursday evening. Police say the teenager was identified by officers as a missing Missouri teen and transported him to a local hospital for evaluation of minor injuries.
Police say that an investigation has not yet uncovered any evidence that a crime occurred in the State of Louisiana. No arrests have been made, but a 27-year-old man from North Carolina was questioned by police and then released. Chief Judice says that other law enforcement agencies are expected to join the investigation.
The teen allegedly told police that he met a 27-year-old man through the Tinder app while in Missouri. The man, who is believed to be a cross-country truck driver, took the teen from Missouri to North Carolina before traveling across the country to California. The teen then told police that the two were heading to Miami when the driver made a stop in Duson to rest. The teenager told police he alerted a motel clerk to contact authorities.
The teen is expected to be returned to his family in Missouri on Friday with the help of the National Human Trafficking Center, according to police.
