17-Year-Old Boy Charged With Raping 9-Year-Old Girl At Maryland State Fair, Abuse Began When The Girl Was 3

A 17-year-old teen, Jonathan Fleming, has been arrested and accused of raping a nine-year-old family friend at the Maryland State Fair. Police allege that the abuse was ongoing with the first instance happening when the child was around three years old. The little girl claims that Fleming forced her to perform sexual acts multiple times per year, including having intercourse, at fairs across Maryland and in other nearby states as the girl’s family and the Flemings traveled together. The teen attended numerous fairs in the area to show his family’s prize-winning cows, which is when the alleged sexual assaults took place.

The Baltimore Sun reports that 17-year-old Jonathan Fleming was arrested after a worried farmer became concerned when he saw the young girl leaving the Swine Barn at the fair with the older teen boy. The farmer informed the girl’s parents and the girl admitted that Fleming had been touching her inappropriately and forcing her to perform sex acts and even have intercourse with him.

The Crimes Against Children Unit has noted that the sexual abuse was likely ongoing and claims that the girl was first assaulted by Fleming when she was just three years old. The girl told investigators that Fleming touched her privates at the Cow Palace at the Maryland State Fair before taking her to a secluded area, including the Fleming family’s cow trailer, to perform sex acts. The investigation reveals that the sexual assaults have allegedly been happening at fairs across Maryland and outlying areas since the girl was three. The Fleming family is friends with the young girl’s family and often frequent fairs together.

The arrest paperwork shows that Jonathan Fleming is being charged as an adult in the case and for a number of sexual offenses. The charges include second-degree rape, second-degree sexual offense, perverted practice, fourth-degree sexual assault, and second-degree assault. He is currently being held at the Baltimore County Detention Center on $500,000 bond.

According to the Daily Mail, the investigation is ongoing and police note that additional charges may be possible in the near future. Meanwhile, the girl has not been identified as she is a minor and a sexual assault victim. It was also noted that Jonathan was a member of the Maryland Angus Association and just last year was named one of the group’s outstanding Junior members. His family runs a cow farm in Maryland called Stone Ridge. The Fleming family has yet to comment on the charges against their son.

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