Tallapoosa County Sheriff Jimmy Abbett said authorities were alerted Monday morning when a driver noticed a 12-year-old girl walking along County Road 34 in Dadeville and called 911. The victim had been restrained to a bedpost for about a week, drugged with alcohol and assaulted. In the process of chewing off her restraints she broke her braces.
Officials said they entered the house and found the bodies of the young girl’s mother and brother. According to court records, the mother had been smothered to death with a pillow in late July, and the young girl’s brother was beaten to death that same day. He was under 14 years of age.
José Paulino Pascual-Reyes, 37, has been charged with first-degree kidnapping and capital murder. Pascual-Reyes made his first court appearance on Wednesday. According to Kevin Hall, an assistant district attorney, he is being held without bond due to the severity of the charges and because prosecutors consider him to be a flight risk.
Pascual-Reyes was the victim’s mother’s boyfriend and had been living at the home where the bodies were found since February. He had been employed at a construction site in Auburn, Alabama. An investigation is being conducted by the F.B.I., local authorities, and the Department of Homeland Security.
Officials gave the girl medical treatment after she was found. Sheriff Abbett says the 12 year-old is in state custody. “She’s a hero,” he said of the victim. “She’s safe and we want to keep her that way.”