A Columbus man was arrested Dec. 27 for statutory rape and contributing to the delinquency of a minor, according to Lowndes County Sheriff Eddie Hawkins.
On Dec. 26 a 15-year-old girl was reported missing by her parents, who live in the county, Hawkins said. They believed she had run off with her boyfriend, Elijah Trout, 23, who lived in East Columbus.
Columbus Police Department officers went to the boyfriend’s mother’s house, but his mother, Roberta Hutchinson, allegedly told them the girl wasn’t there.
Later that day deputies contacted her again and asked if the missing girl was there, and again she denied it, Hawkins said. Deputies eventually went to the house themselves and found the girl there.
She was returned to her parents, Hawkins said, and told them that she and Trout had had sex.
“A 15-year-old cannot (legally) give consent, so that led to a statutory rape charge,” Hawkins said.
Trout was also charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor, as was Hutchinson, Hawkins said. That charge is a misdemeanor.
“We’ve been asked why they weren’t charged with harboring a fugitive, and the answer is that (the victim) wasn’t a fugitive,” he said. “She was just delinquent.”
Trout was released from Lowndes County Adult Detention Center after posting a bond of $25,358.
Brian Jones is the local government reporter for Columbus and Lowndes County.
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