St. George man accused of driving off with teen girl

ST. GEORGE — A 29-year-old man is facing felony charges after allegedly picking up a teen girl who had been walking home and then trying to flee from police.

Eugenio Fabian Hernando-Ramirez was charged on Friday in 5th District Court with child kidnapping, a first-degree felony; failing to stop at the command of police, a third-degree felony; and two counts of reckless endangerment, a class A and class B misdemeanor.

St. George police were called to the area of 750 East and 1000 South at about 9:30 p.m. on Thursday. Two young sisters had been walking home when one sibling reported "a white van with a frog on it approached her sister," a police booking affidavit states.

The van then sped away from the area and the girl could no longer find her 13-year-old sister, according to court documents.

"Due to the possibility of a child kidnapping, multiple officers began circulating the area in an attempt to locate the van," according to the affidavit.

About 45 minutes later, police spotted the van near 900 South and 400 East by officers on bike patrol. The officers attempted to stop the vehicle, but it sped off.

Other officers in patrol cars saw the vehicle a short time later and pursued it as the driver continued to flee, running a red light at one point in an effort to get away, the affidavit states.

When the van drove down a dead-end street, police blocked it in and conducted a felony stop, according to the affidavit. Hernando-Ramirez was taken into custody after getting out of the van. The teen girl was found inside the van, according to police.

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