FBI says Welsh man went to Oregon to rape girl he met online; other victims sought

EUGENE, Ore. – A man from Wales accused of traveling to Oregon to rape a 10-year-old girl he met through an online chat program has previously traveled to other states in the United States, and there might be other victims, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said.

The FBI said in a statement that it’s working with local law enforcement agencies in Oregon and across the country to identify other possible victims of Gareth Vincent Hall after his arrest last week.

Hall, 22, is jailed in Eugene on three counts of first-degree rape, two counts of first-degree sodomy and one count of first-degree kidnapping after allegedly traveling to the city last month and taking the girl to a hotel. Hall’s public defender has not returned a phone message from the Associated Press seeking comment.

Hall and the girl spoke online for two months before meeting in early April, Eugene police said. Hall allegedly picked the girl up in a rental car. The girl sneaked out of the house to go with Hall, who was in Eugene for about four days before returning to the U.K., police said.

The Lane County district attorney’s office issued an arrest warrant for Hall on April 30. Less than a week later, Hall was arrested at an airport in Chicago.

Hall, of Caernarfon, Wales, worked as a lifeguard before his arrest. However, the county council of Hall’s home region said in a statement that Hall had been on suspension from his job since October because of a criminal investigation by North Wales police.