Cops: Teen found tied up after home invasion, texted mom during attack
RALEIGH, N.C. -- A Raleigh mother said she came home to find her teenage daughter tied up and locked in a closet Sunday afternoon.
"It's beyond scary, it's horrifying, they took her clothes, and she's in the closet, nobody ever wants to walk in on their child like that," said the mother, who did not want to be identified. "They forced themselves on her."
Raleigh police said they responded to a call for help just before 3:30 p.m. at a home on Glade Aster Court. That's where they said they found a woman who told them she found her 17-year-old daughter tied up and that two men had broken in from the back of the home.
The victim's mother told ABC11 she was taking her smaller children to the park when she got a phone call from the mother of her daughter's best friend. She said the friend had received a Facetime call from her daughter.
"The best friend's mom said the same thing, something about she had called her best friend, Facetime, with the duct tape on her mouth."
Then the victim's mother said the text messages from her own daughter started to come in.
They read:
"I'm tied up in the closet help"
"Rape"
"Robbers hands tied have gun"
The victim's mother said she was only a few minutes from the house when she raced back home. When she arrived, she parked in the driveway and opened the garage door.
"I pulled up and everything looked so normal, like people were outside and the sun is out and I don't know what I'm walking into," said the mother. "I opened the garage door and I could see straight through my house so the door on the inside is open and the door to the back is open, and it's kicked down like the screen is on the ground."
She said she then ran to the closet and opened the door.
"I find her in the closet taped to a chair on the floor, like somebody threw her in there and closed the door," she said. "I took the tape off, the tape was everywhere. I took the tape off and got her off the floor and got the chair out the closet and called police."
The suspects are described as white males in their mid-20's. One is said to be tall with curly hair, wearing a shirt with a Dr. Pepper logo on it, while the other man is described as being short.
At last check with police and the victim' mother, it does not appear that anything had been stolen from the home. The mother said it looked like the suspects had gone through things before realizing anyone was home at the time.
Anyone with information can call Raleigh CrimeStoppers at (919) 834-HELP or visit www.raleighcrimestoppers.org for text and email reporting options. CrimeStoppers pays cash rewards for anonymous tips that help solve cases.
