Authorities in North Carolina made a startling discovery during a routine traffic stop on July 4.
While conducting the stop, deputies noticed a 16-year-old female passenger who had been reported missing by Florida police just hours earlier.
The incident occurred shortly after midnight when Nash County deputies pulled over a white Audi with Florida plates on I-95 for a traffic violation. During the stop, deputies asked the driver, 40-year-old Alejandro Hernandez Vazquez, some routine questions. Based on their interactions, deputies developed reasonable suspicion that criminal activity was taking place.
With Vazquez's consent, deputies searched the vehicle and quickly realized that the 16-year-old female passenger had been reported missing by the Coral Springs Police Department just five hours prior to the traffic stop. Authorities wasted no time in rescuing the teenager, who had reportedly met Vazquez online. She was transported to the Wake County Juvenile Detention Center and later reunited with her family.
Nash County Sheriff Keith Stone emphasized the importance of monitoring children's social media activity, stating, "Monitor your kids' social media because a lot of this stuff starts with people preying on children. If you're not monitoring what your child is doing on the internet, then there's the possibility that people are taking advantage of them. This older guy here was taking advantage of the 16-year-old. He was carrying her up North, and I'm sure it was not in the best interest of that girl or for society."
The victim's family had no prior knowledge of the suspect, and they did not give him permission to transport her across state lines, according to the sheriff's office.
Former Riverside, Illinois, police Chief Tom Weitzel highlighted the significance of traffic stops in apprehending criminal suspects. While some cities, like Chicago, are advocating for limitations on traffic stops due to concerns about unconscious bias and unnecessary use of force, Weitzel argued that traffic stops often lead to the arrest of individuals with active warrants or the recovery of firearms.
"When I was chief in Riverside, we would make arrests on traffic stops all the time," Weitzel explained. "A really common arrest would be active warrants that the driver or the passenger would have. Serious felony warrants for their arrests. The apprehension of those fugitives would have been greatly delayed if police were prevented from conducting proactive traffic stops."
Weitzel also noted that the recovery of handguns during traffic stops has significantly increased in recent years.
Vazquez has been booked into the Nash County Detention Center and is currently being held on a $505,000 bond. He is facing charges of felony possession of synthetic cannabinoid, possession of marijuana paraphernalia, and contributing to the delinquency of a minor after authorities discovered THC pens in his vehicle.
Former Chief Weitzel emphasized that this arrest and the recovery of illegal substances would not have been possible without the traffic stop conducted by the deputies.
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