Roughly a year after an 8-year-old Arlington girl was sexually assaulted and badly beaten, police are pleading with the community for help catching her attacker.
The father of the girl said he thought the case had been suspended.
Jacksonville Sheriff's Office Investigations Chief Tom Hackney spoke Wednesday next to the wooded area where the girl emerged, crying and bloody a year ago.
“The man who did this … let’s just say he’s a soulless cretin,” he said.
Hackney said police have processed a lot of evidence and spoken to neighbors. Wiley Hodges of First Coast Crime Stoppers said they’re offering a $9,000 reward for tips leading to an arrest — $6,000 of which comes from a new donation from Impact Church.
“Crime stoppers has received nine tips on this case since it happened and unfortunately the last tip we’ve received on this was August,” he said.
After the press conference, the girl’s father questioned the search effort.
“It’s very disappointing. I don't understand how really they sit here and lied,” he said.
The father, who isn’t named to protect his daughter’s identity, interrupted Hackney during the press conference, saying police told him in May his daughter’s case was suspended. But he said he’s feeling better after Hackney later took him aside to chat privately.
“I will say this: He answered some questions, not entirely, but he told some real private things — some really sensitive information,” he said.
The attack happened just before 7 p.m. Aug. 11 next to the Eagle Point Apartment Complex.
