A scrap of paper with the words “Help Me!” written in red marker recently led to the arrest of a 61-year-old Texas man who allegedly abducted a minor at gunpoint and sexually assaulted her while the two traveled to California.
Steven Robert Sablan was reportedly apprehended in Long Beach, California, and faces charges of kidnapping and transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, according to a press release issued by the Central District of California’s U.S. Attorney’s Office.
On July 6, Sablan allegedly confronted a 13-year-old girl walking alone in San Antonio. Court documents claim that Sablan allegedly wielded a gun and coerced the girl into his vehicle, subsequently assaulting her sexually before his arrest.
However, Sablan’s sudden apparent disappearance to California did not go unnoticed. His roommate reported him missing on the same day, leading to Sablan’s entry into the Cleburne Police Department’s missing persons database, according to WFAA.
A few days later, Sablan went to wash clothes at a Long Beach laundromat, leaving the victim in the car. The girl wrote a plea for help on a piece of paper. A bystander who saw the sign consequently alerted authorities. When law enforcement arrived, they found Sablan outside his car.
Police searched Sablan’s vehicle and found a black BB gun, the victim’s “Help Me” sign, and handcuffs. The victim was identified as a missing girl from San Antonio. Authorities transferred custody of her to the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services.
An affidavit indicates Sablan’s had previous convictions for robbery with a deadly weapon in 1979 and again in 1985, along with burglary. AP News reported that his most recent conviction was in 2016 for possessing a controlled substance.
If convicted of both new federal charges, Sablan could spend the rest of his life in prison. Sablan’s arraignment is set for July 31 in U.S. District Court in downtown Los Angeles. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chelsea Norell of the Violent and Organized Crime Section will be prosecuting the case.
Crimes against children have been making headlines in North Texas recently, with instances of murder, sexual assault, and drug overdoses reported. While the City of Dallas does not currently have reliable public-facing statistics on crimes against children due to a purported ransomware attack, the Dallas Police Department (DPD) has been struggling to get crime under control because of a significant staffing shortage.
DPD is staffed far under the 4,000 officers recommended by a City analysis, with some 900 sworn personnel needed to adequately police Dallas. Some have pointed to the staffing shortage as a serious hindrance to the DPD’s ability to respond to high-priority calls.
“It’s going to be a very long time before we ever catch up to where we need to be or where we should be as far as manpower,” Dallas Police Association President Mike Mata said, according to the Dallas Observer.
Crime in Downtown Dallas is particularly bad, especially compared to Fort Worth’s downtown area, which has deployed a dedicated police unit to patrol alongside private security guards.
