An Illinois man reportedly planned to run away with his stepdaughter so the pair could wait until she was legally old enough to marry.
Jerry Pocklington, 29, of Litchfield, Illinois allegedly began a sexual relationship with the girl in July 2013 according to our sister station KTVI. The pair hitchhiked from Litchfield to St. Louis on Wednesday, May 14, 2014.
They continued to Maryland Heights, Missouri, where they were spotted spending the night in an unlocked van they found behind a business. Concerned employees called police.
Pocklington was arrested, and charged in Missouri with two counts of statutory sodomy and one count of statutory rape. He was jailed in lieu of $150,000 cash-only bond. He could face additional charges in Illinois.
Pocklington reportedly told police he planned to go to New York and keep the girl there for four years until she could legally marry him.
