Pierce County man arrested on suspicion of child kidnapping, rape in Grays Harbor County
Grays Harbor deputies have arrested a Pierce County man accused of kidnapping and raping children.
Deputies arrested William Collin Snavely, 44, on Sept. 1 while responding to a report of a missing teenage girl, according to a Wednesday news release from the Grays Harbor Sheriff’s Office.
The search began at about 2 a.m. after the young teen had reportedly left her family home without her cellphone. The release says her parents found evidence on her phone that she left to meet a person she met online. Deputies then used the person’s phone number to identify Snavely as a suspect.
Deputies obtained a description for Snavely’s vehicle and searched the area. The Sheriff’s Office said they found Snavely attempting to leave the area at a “high rate of speed,” according to the release.
Once he was found, deputies stopped, detained and questioned Snavely. However, the girl was not in his vehicle. The release says deputies later found the girl walking on a roadway near her home.
“Due to the quick response by patrol deputies and the comprehensive investigation by the detective’s division, this subject was quickly apprehended and was not able to flee the county to continue preying on the youth of our communities,” the Sheriff’s Office said in their news release.
Since the incident, detectives have been investigating Snavely. The release indicates he traveled from Pierce County to Grays Harbor County to specifically meet the girl.
Detectives also learned that Snavely had made that trip on at least two other occasions to allegedly meet with two children for the “purposes of engaging in illegal sexual acts,” according to the release.
Deputies booked Snavely into the Grays Harbor County jail on suspicion of three counts of first-degree kidnapping and three counts of third-degree rape, according to the release.
Additionally, he was booked for possession of depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct, dealing in depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct and two counts of communicating with a minor for immoral purposes.
The release indicates the Sheriff’s Office is still investigating the case and seeking additional information. The Grays Harbor Sheriff’s Office can be contacted at (360) 249-3711.
This story was originally published September 5, 2024 at 10:07 AM.
