CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. (WTVR) -- New details are emerging about what led to a Chesterfield teen being lured to have sex with a member of the U.S. Army's prestigious Old Guard.
According to Chesterfield police, officers were called to a Brandermill home in July, for a report of a 14-year-old runaway.
One neighbor, who heard the teen left a note behind telling her mother and grandmother she was leaving home, had no idea that the situation would end up like this.
Police later discovered that the teen had started an online relationship with 30-year-old Army Specialist Matthew McKendrick in northern Virginia.
Investigators discovered the teen visited McKendrick at his Alexandria apartment.
Chesterfield police began working with Fairfax County authorities to find the missing girl. They tracked her down at McKendrick's home, but not before the suspect allegedly had sex with the girl and posting photos of the act online.
CBS 6 spotted an investigator with the Fairfax County Public Defender's Office at the teenager's Chesterfield home Tuesday. He would not comment one the case, but did say that the investigation is ongoing.
The U.S. Army is also cooperating with the investigation. McKendrick was a member of the prestigious infantry division called the Old Guard, which serves as the official Honor Guard of the Army. The unit also provides funeral escorts at Arlington National Cemetery and keeps vigil at the Tomb of the Unknowns.
McKendrick remains behind bars with no bond.
In light of what happened, neighbor Kevin Collins said he is working on a game plan to protect his daughter from internet predators.
"Sometimes it takes something like this, especially when it's something in the neighborhood, to really make you wake up and realize the potential out there," said Collins. "They just don't use their heads. I mean they're teenagers..."
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