Leaf-Chronicle: Man Charged With Having Sex With 15-Year-Old

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. — A Clarksville man was arrested Wednesday after allegedly bringing a 15-year-old girl from Louisville, Kentucky, to his home to have sex with her.

According to an arrest warrant, Ralph Goodwin, 65, brought the girl to Clarksville after he traveled to Kentucky to have sex with her. The girl had been coerced into prostitution, the warrant states, but it does not say who coerced her.

According to a police report from the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office, a deputy received a call about a missing juvenile on Tuesday and went to Goodwin's residence on Fantasia Way. According to the incident report, the girl's mother reported her daughter missing on Friday. The mother later received a tip telling her the girl was at the Fantasia Way address.

Deputies then went to Goodwin's house and noticed the girl sitting in a chair in the living room. Goodwin answered the door and deputies asked him if they could speak with the girl. At first the girl wouldn't tell police who she was, according to the police report, but later confirmed she was the missing girl.

The girl told investigators Goodwin knew she was 15 years old and had engaged in intercourse with her at his home in Clarksville, according to the warrant.

Another person also was listed as a suspect in the case.

Investigators said Wednesday it could be a possible human trafficking case. The sheriff's office is working with authorities in Kentucky and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation as part of the ongoing investigation. No other information was available Wednesday afternoon.

Goodwin was booked into the Montgomery County Jail on one charge of statutory rape. Two other charges were added later Wednesday that included aggravated kidnapping and trafficking for a human sex act. Bond was set at $1 million.

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Readers are reminded that an arrest, charge or indictment is an allegation and not a statement of guilt. Those charged are presumed not guilty until convicted by a judge or jury.

Reach Ray Howze at 931-245-0750 and on Twitter @rayhowze_leaf.