BEAR, Del. — A Delaware man is accused of kidnapping an 11-year-old New Jersey girl he allegedly met while playing online video games, authorities said.
According to a news release from the Wayne Police Department, Darius Matylewich, 27, of Bear, was arrested and charged with first-degree kidnapping and third-degree endangering the welfare of a child.
Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia Valdes said that the girl disappeared from her home in Wayne on Sept. 10, NJ.com reported. Police determined that Matylewich met the victim while playing Roblox and transported her 135 miles from Wayne to Bear without her parents’ knowledge, according to WPVI-TV.
Chief Assistant Prosecutor Jennifer Fetterman of the Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office said that the suspect and victim communicated on several video game platforms, according to Law & Crime.
In its statement, the Wayne Police Department did not specify the game, noting only that the victim was playing “an online video game.”
The child was reported missing at about 6:45 a.m. on Sept. 10, Valdes and Wayne police Chief Jack McNiff said in a statement, according to NJ.com.
Officials did not elaborate on how the girl was abducted, WPVI reported.
Police in New Castle County, Delaware, found the girl in Matylewich’s hometown of Bear several hours later and arrested him, USA Today reported. He was extradited to New Jersey, according to the newspaper.
Roblox, a popular online game, allows players to create and play with other players online, WNBC-TV reported.
Roblox has more than 54 million users daily, with nearly half of them under the age of 13, WPVI reported.
In a statement to ABC News per WPVI, Roblox said it had “reached out to law enforcement and are offering our help.”
“We work tirelessly to prevent grooming on our platform and have a team of thousands of moderators who enforce a strict set of community standards,” a spokesperson said.
On its website, Roblox lists several resources for parents concerned about their children’s safety.
“Safety and civility are foundational to everything we do,” the company said. “We’ve built a platform with industry-leading safety and civility features. We continuously evolve our platform as our community grows and evolves.”
Matylewich’s attorney, Jillian Elko, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Monday, according to USA Today. Matylewich had been expected in court Monday, but a court official said his hearing was delayed until Friday, according to the newspaper.
If convicted, Matylewich could face more than 30 years in prison, USA Today reported.
