Crime

El Dorado deputies arrest man who picked up 2 runaways for suspected human trafficking

El Dorado County sheriff deputies have arrested a man on suspicion of kidnapping and trafficking two girls who ran away from a local group home Monday.

Staff members at the group home called the Sheriff’s Office after the two girls ran away, and reported they were picked up by an unknown person. The staff initially followed the car and gave a description to deputies, who then notified neighboring law enforcement agencies and fanned out.

About an hour later, the car was found by deputies on Mormon Emigrant Trail.

The girls were safely rescued and the driver, 29-year-old Edward Gray of Tracy, was arrested without incident, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

Edward was booked into El Dorado County Jail for human trafficking, kidnapping under the age of 14, pimping, pandering and criminal threats. His bail is currently set at $5.7 million.

Alexandra Yoon-Hendricks
The Sacramento Bee
Alexandra Yoon-Hendricks covers equity issues in the Sacramento region. She’s previously worked at The New York Times and NPR, and is a former Bee intern. She graduated from UC Berkeley, where she was the managing editor of The Daily Californian. Support my work with a digital subscription
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