Reporters with an Ohio paper helped to confirm the viral story of a 10-year-old girl who was sexually assaulted and forced to travel out-of-state to get an abortion after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
Earlier this month, the Indianapolis Star Tribune reported that the child was six weeks pregnant when she was forced to travel from her home state of Ohio to Indiana to obtain an abortion, citing a doctor who said the girl was on her way to receive care. Ohio implemented a ban on the procedure after six weeks shortly following the court’s decision.
The story quickly went viral, with President Joe Biden bringing up the story before signing an executive order to protect abortion rights last week.
Some publications, however, pointed out the thin sourcing from the Star Tribune, with the Wall Street Journal’s editorial board going so far as to sling the headline “An Abortion Story Too Good To Confirm.”
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost (R) also expressed doubt over the story, telling Fox News he had not heard “a whisper” of a police report being filed.
The Columbus Dispatch confirmed the story Wednesday, reporting that Gershon Fuentes, 27, was arrested and charged with rape after police say he confessed on Tuesday that he had raped the child on at least two occasions.
More from the Dispatch:
Columbus police were made aware of the girl’s pregnancy through a referral by Franklin County Children Services that was made by her mother on June 22, Det. Jeffrey Huhn testified Wednesday morning at Fuentes’ arraignment. On June 30, the girl underwent a medical abortion in Indianapolis, Huhn said.
Huhn also testified that DNA from the clinic in Indianapolis is being tested against samples from Fuentes, as well as the child’s siblings, to confirm contribution to the aborted fetus.
Bethany Bruner, one of three reporters who worked to confirm the case, said on Twitter she was the only reporter in the courtroom at Fuentes’ arraignment.
After previously saying the story was likely a “fabrication,” Yost issued a single-sentence response to Wednesday’s report.
“We rejoice anytime a child rapist is taken off the streets,” the attorney general said in a statement.