Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

11-year-old girl hit by car, raped and left in ditch

Man forces child into his vehicle before driving away

Jon Sharman
Wednesday 07 December 2016 17:48 GMT
Larry Ward, 20
Larry Ward, 20 (WMC-TV Channel 5)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

A man has been arrested after an 11-year-old girl was hit by a car, raped and left in a ditch as she walked to school.

The girl told police she was hit near an intersection in Memphis, Tennessee, before a man got out of a sports utility vehicle, forced her inside and drove away. He then attacked her, WMC Action News 5 reported.

The girl's mother told local media her daughter was battered and bruised. She added: "He snatched her, put her in the truck, raped her, and then dropped her off".

Larry Ward, 20, was arrested and charged with aggravated kidnapping, child rape and aggravated assault. He is next due in court on December 8.

Memphis Police Department director Mike Rallings said after the attack on Monday: "That broke my heart to imagine that a little innocent 11-year-old girl, on the way to school, was brutally attacked by anyone.

"I'm glad that we have worked again to bring that family some closure."

The girl was found crying by the side of the road by a man on his way to work.

Cameron Fifer told WMC: "First thing she said was, 'I just got raped'."

Emergency services responded WMC
Emergency services responded WMC (TV grab from WMC)

Director Rallings urged parents to make sure their children walked in groups.

Resident Jimmie Blanchard said: "I can only imagine what she was going through. It hurts my heart."

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in