A man from Columbus, Ohio was charged on Wednesday with raping and impregnating a 10-year-old girl, whose story of traveling across state lines to get an abortion was told by President Biden following the repeal of Roe v. Wade.
Gershon Fuentes, 27, was apprehended on Tuesday and admitted to sexually assaulting the child at least twice, according to the Columbus Dispatch.
A detective testified in court that local child services informed authorities about the child’s circumstance after her mother had reached out on June 22, the paper said. The same detective confirmed that the girl was then brought to Indiana, where she was given an abortion.
Authorities are cross-referencing DNA from the clinic in Indianapolis with samples from Fuentes.
Fuentes is facing a felony charge of rape and is currently being held in Franklin County jail and might be undocumented, according to the Dispatch. Judge Cynthia Ebner set a $2 million bail for Fuentes.
President Biden faced skepticism after he repeated the horrifying story while pushing for his executive order on abortion.
“Imagine being that little girl,” Biden said. “I’m serious, just imagine being that little girl. Ten years old!” The charges brought Wednesday appeared to vindicate the president.
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost questioned the tale on Fox News, writing that he was unaware of the story, and despite being in regular contact with authorities, he had heard “not a whisper.”
The original story was relayed by Indianapolis OB-GYM Dr. Caitlin Bernard, who said the child was six weeks and three days pregnant, making it too late for her to receive abortion care under Ohio’s restrictive abortion law triggered by the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision.
