A man was arrested Friday on allegations that he kidnapped a 12-year-old girl, brought her to his home and sexually assaulted her, Union County Prosecutor William A. Daniel said.
Keith Ashley-Drake, 52, is accused of kidnapping the girl as she was walking home from a movie theatre in Irvington before driving her to his home in Fanwood where the alleged assault took place, officials said.
The Union County Prosecutor’s Office was notified by Essex County authorities on March 24 about a reported kidnapping and subsequent attack, authorities said.
Investigators said the kidnapping happened about 10 p.m. on March 17 and that the assault happened after midnight on March 18, prosecutors said. Detectives identified Ashley-Drake as the suspect and he was arrested on Friday, officials said.
He is charged with kidnapping and aggravated sexual assault, both first-degree crimes, as well as sexual assault and endangering the welfare of a child, prosecutors said. He is being held in Essex County Jail pending a detention hearing on April 5.