A Burlington County man was ordered held in jail in the alleged sexual assault of a 13-year-old girl.
Aahznier Hayes, then 21, was found in a vehicle Feb. 11, by police looking for the girl who was reported missing from her Buena home at about 6:37 that evening, according to the charges.
The officer noticed the zipper to Hayes' pants was down, and then saw a juvenile girl trying to hide in the backseat, according to the affidavit of probable cause.
She was identified as the missing girl.
Hayes, who lives in Westhampton, lied about his date of birth, according to the charges. At the time, he had an outstanding warrant for theft out of Burlington County, according to court records.
The girl eventually admitted to performing a sex act on Hayes, and said that the two had engaged in the same act when they had met in person for the first time. She told police she did not know the exact date of the first encounter.
The two men on Snapchat, which Hayes used to send the girl sexually explicit videos, according to information released at Hayes' detention hearing Monday.
It was not clear why Hayes, who turned 22 in April, was not arrested until last week.
He has no criminal history, defense attorney Mark Molz noted.
The public safety assessment, which is used to help determine whether a defendant is held under bail reform, recommended he be released.
But the judge determined that Hayes was a risk to the girl and other minors.
That Hayes allegedly traveled about an hour to meet the girl in Landisville was concerning, Judge Nancy Ridgway said.
The allegations that Hayes said he had not seen the girl who was hiding his back seat and then giving a fake birth date "demonstrates his propensity to obstruct the criminal justice process," the judge said.
She also noted that, rather than asking for help, the girl was hiding, showing "he's already gotten to her, unfortunately."
Hayes will remain jailed pending resolution of his case.
