Missing 12-year-old North Carolina girl found with registered sex offender after Ohio crash

A registered sex offender is facing kidnapping charges after authorities in Ohio said they were called to the scene of a crash and found him in a car with a missing 12-year-old girl from North Carolina.

The Hocking County Sheriff's Office said 45-year-old Virgil E. Larson Jr., a registered sex offender in Fairfield County, Ohio, is facing a felony count of kidnapping and a misdemeanor charge of resisting arrest after a crash investigation. 

According to the sheriff's office, deputies were sent to a single-vehicle crash on Route 33 in the early morning hours of April 5. When they got there, they said they found Larson along with a 12-year-old girl.

Deputies said they were suspicious of the circumstances, and after further questioning, they learned the girl had been reported missing from her home in North Carolina the previous evening. Deputies said they contacted the girl's parents, who confirmed the missing person report. 

The Hocking County sheriff says investigators believe Larson messaged the victim on social media and made up a fake scenario to lure her. The sheriff's office said Larson pretended to be a boy her age and said his father would pick her up and "transport her to a safe location." 

Both Larson and the girl were taken to a hospital to be evaluated. Larson was later taken to the Southeast Ohio Regional Jail, the sheriff's office said. 

The Hocking County Sheriff's Office said the investigation remains ongoing, and it's coordinating with authorities in North Carolina as well as the FBI.