WAUPACA COUNTY, Wis. — A man is facing nearly a dozen charges after authorities say he kidnapped and sexually abused a teenage girl in Waupaca County.
A criminal complaint accuses Elijah Kerrigan of keeping a 15-year-old girl in a motel room, sexually abusing her and giving her drugs.
According to statements in the criminal complaint, the victim originally ran away and was last seen on New Year's Eve. On January 8, the victim's mother got a text message saying her daughter had been kidnapped. The message demanded $2,500 ransom for her safe return.
The criminal complaint says officers learned that the girl may have been with Kerrigan. Court documents say investigators tracked down Kerrigan to a hotel room in Clintonville, where they found the victim hiding under the bed.
According to the criminal complaint, the victim told investigators that she had ran away on New Year's Eve and went to hang out with Kerrigan, calling him a father figure.
Court documents say Kerrigan and the girl went to his hotel room, where she says they did meth and marijuana. The criminal complaint says investigators found a video on Kerrigan's phone that appears to show the victim performing a sex act on Kerrigan while in the hotel room.
The victim indicated that Kerrigan said he would take her back but he never did "because they got sidetracked".
Kerrigan is due in court Tuesday afternoon.
