Teen runaway Fain is discoveredGirl is found in the apartment of a 43-year-old manAugust 17. 2004 7:30AM OCALA - A 15-year-old Summerfield girl who had been missing since May 30 was found Monday by Broward County Sheriff's Office deputies after an anonymous tip that she was staying with 43-year-old Jeffery Moseley in a Dania Beach apartment complex. And while details are still sketchy about why and how Samantha Fain left with Moseley, family members are just relieved she'll be coming back home. "She told me that she missed all of us," said Penny Andrews, recounting the first conversation with her niece since her disappearance. "She's upset. She was saying how sorry she was. . . . She kept saying she kept trying to call but he wouldn't let her." The teenager reportedly found consolation in the voice messages her family would leave her on his cell phone. "She said she cried when she heard the messages my grandson and brother left," Andrews said. Broward sheriff's spokesman Hugh Graf said a Marion County deputy called their agency Monday and asked the department to check up on an anonymous tip detailing Samantha's whereabouts. At 2 p.m., Broward deputies arrived at an apartment complex in the 1500 block of Southwest Third Avenue in Dania Beach, where they found the teenager with Moseley. Andrews also said Samantha told her that Moseley had tried to change her appearance by dyeing her hair black. The last few months have been hard for Andrews, who said she noticed something was going on between the two. "I could tell you there was something going on between them, but my sister wouldn't listen to it. She didn't pay attention for me," she said. Up until late April, Samantha's mother, Stacey Fairless, also known as Stacey Bentley, had custody of her daughter and son, until she was charged with felony child abuse on April 21, according to Marion County court records. Then Andrews became Samantha's guardian. The same day, Moseley was arrested on child sex charges. His bond was set at $25,000 by Judge Frances S. King, who ordered the man to stay away from Samantha, and he posted bail. Moseley had a previous sexual battery arrest on Nov. 3. In May, the teen left with Moseley. A Statewide Missing Child Alert was issued. Marion County sheriff's spokesman Lenny Uptagraft said an Amber Alert was not issued because investigators believed Samantha left by choice. The case was classified as a runaway. Andrews is glad her niece is back but fears for the future. "I'm just glad she's been found and she's safe," she said. "I want her to get back home. She has a lot of counseling she needs. That man ruined her life." She said: "I think he will be charged with something. I hope so. . . . As long as he stays in jail she'll be safe." Samantha was picked up by Florida Department of Children and Families workers late Monday and was being returned to Andrews. Moseley is currently being held at the Broward County Sheriff's Office on the two pending felony charges. Courts records indicate that nine sexual battery counts from April 21 were dropped, leaving one count of lewd and lascivious battery on a child. Contributor: BY MABEL PEREZ STAFF WRITER Copyright by Ocala.com/StarBanner 2004. All rights reserved. |