Exclusive interview: Teen defends sex offender she ran away with
Nov 13, 2024
PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) - A 14-year-old girl who went missing early Monday from a Chesapeake hotel spoke exclusively with WAVY News 10's Andy Fox Wednesday afternoon about why she ran.
Virginia State Police issued a CODI alert after Deborah Jenkins, who goes by Abby, went missing. She was located Tuesday night, but the man she was last seen with remains wanted by police.
Missing Chesapeake teen found safe, police searching for man with her
According to Chesapeake Police Officer Leo Kosinski, 41-year-old registered sex offender James Ronald Bell was already wanted on outstanding charges in another city, but will be facing additional charges related to this recent incident. He did not say what those new charges will be.
In her interview with WAVY, Abby said she ran away with Bell on her own accord.
"James Bell has posed no threat to me. I've looked him up before. I know what his charges are. I've taken precautions. He poses no threat to me. I trust him with my life. We ran. He never took me. I decided to follow him. He was running. I was following him," Abby said.
During the interview, social services arrived at her custodial guardian's house in Portsmouth to pick up Abby.
"I'm about to go to foster care. I don't know where I'm going. It's scary," she said.
The teen and Bell were last seen around 1 a.m. on Monday outside the Comfort Inn and Suites on South Military Highway in Chesapeake. An image provided by Chesapeake Police shows them walking down a hallway at the hotel.
Image provided by Chesapeake Police
"We were running for a reason. I was running for a reason, but I wasn't running with him. He never took me. If you look on the footage from the Comfort, I was actually the one pushing him out the door," she said.
She explained that she was running away after she had an argument with her custodial guardian, Christine Burton, who was standing in earshot when she said this.
"I've gave her more than I've gave my own children," Burton told WAVY.
Abby said she does not know where Bell is.
Tune in to WAVY News 10 beginning at 4 p.m. for more of Andy's exclusive interview.