need to know
-
North Carolina man pulled over for speeding in Florida
-
When the officer asked the passenger for identification, she gave him several false names and dates of birth, police said.
-
Police said the man, Joshua Magraff, said the two were “playing gambling games” in Florida
A North Carolina man was pulled over for speeding and a deputy found a teenage girl in his car who had been missing for a month, authorities said.
On Sunday, March 8, a deputy with the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office in Florida stopped a vehicle traveling at a high rate of speed on U.S. Highway 17 near Crescent City, according to a statement posted by the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office on Facebook.
In body camera footage provided by the Sheriff’s Office, the driver identified himself as Joshua Magraff, 37, of Charlotte. When the officer asked the young female passenger for identification, Margrave said, “No sir, that’s my little cousin,” saying she was 16 years old.
When the officer asked the passenger for her name, she said, “Huh?” several times before saying her name was Brandi Lewis.
She said she was born in 2013, which makes her only 12 years old.
The passenger then gave the deputy two false names and date of birth, causing the deputy to fear for her safety, the statement said.
The officer asked the girl to sit in his patrol car and she told him her real name.
“After a search, it was discovered that the teen went missing in North Carolina a month ago,” the statement said.
Authorities contacted the teen’s mother, who said she did not know Margrave and reported her daughter missing on Feb. 16.
The deputy asked Margrave to get out of the car and asked him about his relationship with the teen.
Margrave changed his story, saying she was not his cousin but a “friend.”
When the deputy asked Margrave how old he was, Margrave told him he was 37.
“You’re 37 years old and you’re friends with a 16-year-old girl?” the deputy asked Margraf.
Want the latest crime coverage? register people‘s free true crime newsletter Breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.
Margrave then told the deputy he believed the girl was 19 and that they were in Florida “to play gambling games,” the statement said.
Officers searched the vehicle and allegedly found 19 counterfeit $100 bills, synthetic marijuana, hashish and drug paraphernalia.
Deputies contacted the Department of Children and Families to request custody of the teen until she could be reunited with her mother.
Margrave was arrested and charged with interfering with the custody of a child, possession of synthetic marijuana, possession of counterfeit currency, contributing to the delinquency of a minor and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Joshua Margrave Photos
Photo Credit: Putnam County Sheriff’s Office
He was taken to the Putnam County Jail and held on $9,000 bond.
The investigation is ongoing.
It was unclear whether Margrave had an attorney who could speak on his behalf.
Read the original article on People
