CRIMINAL complaints were filed against an American national who was caught with a 17-year-old girl in his home in barangay Odloy, Bogo City, northern Cebu.
David Ray Carpenter was charged before the Bogo City Prosecutors’ Office last Tuesday afternoon.
Carpenter, a 68-year-old pensioner from North Carolina, USA, was charged for violating Republic Act (RA) 7610 or the Anti-Child Abuse Act and RA 9208 or the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003.
RA 7610 prohibits adults from being with underaged persons, those 12 years old and younger or those 10 years under his/her age, in any public or private place unless they are related by blood, affinity or some bond recognized by law, custom or tradition.
The penalty is imprisonment and a P50,000 fine.
Police arrested Carpenter last Friday in his house where he was caught in the company of the girl and the minor’s parents.
Carpenter offered to marry the girl in the US once she turns 18 years old.
The girl’s parents were also charged for tolerating the alleged relationship.
Lawyer Noemi Truya, spokesperson of the Children’s Legal Bureau (CLB), said the three accused have signed a Waiver of Detention and were ordered by the prosecutor to submit their counter affidavit in 10 days.
In a child abuse case, she added, a victim should not be kept in the same room as the accused.
The minor will stay in an undisclosed facility in Cebu pending the outcome of the case.