Jack Steele San Antonio man charged with kidnapping a seven year old girl outside North Side apartment complex. Incident happened after suspect had gotten into pool with other children.
A 42 year old man has been arrested after allegedly kidnapping a 7 year old girl outside a North Side apartment complex in San Antonio, Texas. The girl managed to escape while in the man’s car according to reports.
Jack Steele, 42, was taken into custody Wednesday afternoon at his apartment in the 2600 block of Nacogdoches Road following the incident which took place on the evening of August 8th.
KSAT reported the girl’s father, Stephen Gonzalez, saying his daughter was taking the family dog out to use the bathroom circa 8:15 p.m. when a ‘man’ grabbed her and put her into a red SUV.
The girl told police she was accosted after the SUV reversed towards her and parked, with the suspect coming up from behind her and throwing her in the vehicle.
It was while Steele tried exiting the apartment complex near Loop 1604 and Redland Road, the girl noticing the back doors were unlocked and jumping out while yelling for help, according to an arrest affidavit.
A resident nearby was able to help the girl and spot the red SUV speeding out of the exit gate KSAT reported.
‘They had video of him getting in the pool with everybody, and he was, like, stalking kids in the apartment complex. And then he just grabbed her,’ Gonzalez said.
CBS Austin reported police saying Steele had been seen loitering in the apartment complex, in which he didn’t live at, for an hour before the kidnapping incident.
Jack Steele, 42, denied having any contact with the 7-yr-old girl he’s accused of kidnapping. But according to an arrest warrant, detectives found evidence in his SUV that corroborates the girl’s story. Police also say the public played a huge role in helping them identify him. pic.twitter.com/Sm1l1loNf4
— Robert Price (@RobertPriceTV) August 15, 2019
‘Are you here to question me about a trespassing at a pool the other day?’
During the investigation, San Antonio police said they received leads which included Steele’s home address.
When detectives arrived at the man’s apartment complex, they found a red SUV matching the description of the suspect vehicle and observed Steele walking out to the parking lot, according to the affidavit.
Steele had asked detectives if they were there to question him about ‘trespassing at a pool the day before,’ the affidavit said.
During further questioning, Steele claimed he went for a drive to scope out a new apartment complex WOAI reported. Despite not knowing which complex he visited, Steele admitted he had parked next to a pool because he ‘wanted to keep an eye on his vehicle,’ according to the affidavit.
When detectives showed Steele one of the images taken from surveillance footage, he claimed it wasn’t him near the pool but confessed he wore the same clothing on the day the picture was taken, the affidavit said.
Steele denied any interaction with the girl and anyone being in his vehicle.
Police said evidence collected from Steele’s SUV supported the girl’s claims, with additional samples still being processed at the Bexar County Crime Lab.
‘As a parent, this is always upsetting to hear. So, once again, we’re just glad (Steele) is behind bars,’ Sgt. Michelle Ramos of the San Antonio Police Dept said.
Ramos said Steele is being charged with kidnapping, a third-degree felony.
Not immediately clear is what led to the man seeking to kidnap the girl and whether there had been other instances Steele had ‘scoped’ out victims.
