Abductor Sexually Abused 7-Year-Old Girl, Fbi Says Man Duct Taped Child To A Tree, Tried To Rape Her Four Times
The man who kidnapped a 7-year-old Hermiston girl sexually abused her and tried four times to rape her, according to an FBI affidavit released Thursday.
James William Fry, 32, was arrested Wednesday in Caldwell, Idaho, on federal charges of kidnapping and transportation of a minor across state lines. He faces a maximum penalty of life in prison if convicted.
Fry is accused of kidnapping the girl from a Hermiston street corner July 22 and taking her to his apartment in Pasco. Police say the girl was brought back to Hermiston late in the night on July 23 by Fry and dropped off at a Shari’s Restaurant.
The affidavit by Portland FBI agent Pat Geonetta and filed Wednesday reveals more details about what allegedly occurred during the 28 hours the girl was held against her will.
After the kidnapping, Fry drove the girl to a remote area outside of town and tied her to a tree with duct tape, the affidavit said. He returned around daylight to get her, having swapped a stolen red Nissan pickup for a white truck.
Fry then drove the girl across the Interstate 82 bridge in Tri-Cities on the way to his apartment complex in Pasco, the affidavit said. Fry and the girl sat on a couch in his studio apartment and watched an X-rated video, the agent wrote.
On four separate occasions throughout the day, Fry tried to rape the girl on the bed, the affidavit said. He also sexually abused her, Geonetta wrote.
The girl said Fry also talked about his own daughter, who he said he hadn’t seen in four years because “he had hit his wife.” A picture of the man’s daughter, showing her with blonde hair and glasses, rested on a night stand near the bed.
On Feb. 4, 1993, Fry’s wife Carol Fry obtained a protective order to keep her husband away from their daughter. Three months later, a domestic battery charge was filed against Fry, according to Canyon County, Idaho, deputy prosecuting attorney Todd Lakey.
The abducted girl said she saw Fry sniffing a white powder. When she asked him whether it was drugs, he told her “It was something to help him stay awake,” the affidavit said.
Fry was arrested at a friend’s house Wednesday by local police. Federal, state and local authorities had been looking for him for more than a week.
Fry had been traveling with his 17-year-old stepniece, Jessica Poole. The girl said she went with Fry because he had methamphetamine. No charges were filed against Fry in connection with his travel with his stepniece.
Fry waived extradition, and U.S. marshals have until Aug. 9 to transport him to Portland, Geonetta said.