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A 13th adult has been arrested and charged in connection with the disappearance and sex trafficking case of a 14-year-old Patchogue girl who was missing for 25 days in December and January.
Court records indicate that Anthony Wright, 40, is charged with second-degree rape and endangering the welfare of a child. The Amityville man pleaded not guilty Tuesday at his arraignment in Suffolk County First District Court in Central Islip; his bail was set bail at $500,000 cash or a $1 million insured bond.
A criminal complaint alleged that Wright engaged in sexual activity with the teen at his home on Silverpine Drive on Dec. 22 and 23, Newsday reported. Detectives said the arrest was based on a sworn written statement provided to investigators on Feb. 18 by the victim, in addition to Wright’s interview with police on Monday, the report stated.
Wright is the eighth man charged with raping the teen after she left her home about 5 p.m. on Dec. 9. He is due back in court on Friday.
The girl, who Greater Long Island is not identifying because she is a child and the victim of sex crimes, was found Jan. 3 on a large boat docked in an Islip marina.
Wright’s arrest came 17 days after Daniel Soto, 36, of Bay Shore became the 12th Suffolk County resident charged in the case. Soto pleaded not guilty Feb. 7 to second-degree rape and endangering the welfare of a child.
Boat owner was the first arrest
Francis Buckheit, 64, the owner of the boat where the girl was found alone, was the first suspect arrested in her disappearance. Arrested the day after she was found, he is charged with rape and kidnapping.
The other defendants in the case include Alton Harrell, 35, who allegedly picked the teen up in his car outside of her home on Dec. 9. From there, prosecutors said, he took her to Bellport and allegedly raped her inside a house on Doane Avenue.
Harrell is charged with second-degree rape and second-degree kidnapping.
Bunice Knight, 47, of Copiague is charged with rape; and Jacquelyn Comiskey, 52, of Bellport and Elizabeth Hunter, 34, of Islip are both facing child sex trafficking charges. Daniel Burke, 63, of Bohemia is charged with first-degree kidnapping and second-degree rape, while Islip resident Robert Eccleston, 61, is charged with second-degree kidnapping and second-degree rape.
Kevin McDonald, 20, of Bellport was charged with second-degree rape and endangering the welfare of a child.
Deer Park 42-year-old Deshaun McClean, an aide at the psychiatric facility where the teen is being treated and cared for, was charged with criminal sexual conduct for allegedly touching the girl in private areas on numerous occasions and also watching her engage in sexual activity while being cared for at the facility, Newsday reported previously.
Ralph Knowles, 63, of Brentwood faces charges of rape and endangering the welfare of a child, along with assorted drug charges. Rebecca Browell, 48, who lives with Knowles, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child, and also drug charges.
Each of the defendants deny the charges and have pleaded not guilty.
Top image: Mugshots of the 12 suspects allegedly involved in the kidnapping, rape and sex trafficking case of a 14-year-old Patchogue girl, who went missing for 25 days. (An aide at the facility where the girl is being treated also has been arrested.) Top row, from left: Anthony Wright, 40, of Amityville; Daniel Soto, of Bay Shore; Daniel Burke, 63, of Bohemia; and Elizabeth Hunter, 34, of Islip. Middle row, from left: Francis Buckheit, 64, of East Islip; Jacquelyn Comiskey, 52, of Bellport; Robert Eccleston, 61, of Islip; and Kevin McDonald, 20, of Bellport. Bottom row, from left: Ralph Knowles, 63, of Brentwood; Alton Harrell, 35, of Bellport; Bunice Knight, 47, of Copiague; and Rebecca Browell, 48, of Brentwood. (Images provided by the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office).
