Man Faces Sex Crime Charge 13-Year-Old Runaway Allegedly Taken From Spokane To Mexico

A man who took a 13-year-old runaway from Spokane to Mexico faces a federal sex crime charge.

Jose Guel-Perez, 29, is accused in a federal complaint of transporting a child interstate for the purpose of engaging in a sex act, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Tom Rice.

He was arrested Jan. 12 by U.S. Customs officials and FBI agents after attempting to return to the United States from Mexico.

The girl, who was traveling with Guel-Perez, was taken into custody and since has been returned to her mother who lives in Okanogan County, FBI agents say.

In court documents filed by the FBI, it is alleged the suspect was living with the girl’s mother.

Last July, Okanogan County sheriff’s deputies and state Child Protective Service workers investigated a complaint that Guel-Perez had touched the girl in a sexual manner.

No charges were filed as a result of that investigation.

On Jan. 6, an affidavit says, the suspect and the girl disappeared from the home of the girl’s mother. Three days later, the girl called home and said she was in California with Guel-Perez.

The pair then went to Mexico before attempting to re-enter the United States at Hidalgo, Texas, on Jan. 12.

When he was questioned by authorities, Guel-Perez admitted having sexual intercourse with the girl, and she corroborated those statements, court documents say.