Man, 54, charged with raping girl, 5

FORT SMITH -- Fort Smith police have arrested a 54-year-old man over accusations he pulled a 5-year-old girl into his apartment Wednesday evening and sexually assaulted her.

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A police news release said James Michael Deeds was booked into the Sebastian County jail on charges of rape and kidnapping and was held in the jail in lieu of a $100,000 bond.

The release said the child was playing outside the apartment complex at 4201 Kinkead Ave. about 6 p.m. when she disappeared for 30 to 45 minutes. The girl's mother went to several apartments looking for her.

She also noticed that Deeds, who she said always sat outside his apartment, also was missing, the release said.

She finally found her daughter next to the playground at the complex, but she was acting strange, according to the release. The girl told her mother that a man at Deeds' apartment pulled her inside and sexually assaulted her.

Deeds was taken into custody but refused to talk to investigators and was booked into the jail, the release said. Officers obtained a search warrant for his apartment and found a hair band in the vicinity of where the girl said she was assaulted.

The officers also found several other hair bows and hair bands, coloring books and other things that made it appear Deeds had children in his apartment, even though he is not married and does not have children, the release said.

NW News on 06/20/2015

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