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Putnam deputy instrumental in Brazil man’s felony arrest
BRAZIL — The hard work of local deputies and a chance call from a Pennsylvania man led to the arrest of a Brazil suspect on felony charges recently.
An investigation that started with a report of a missing 14-year-old Putnam County girl resulted in 46-year-old Darcey Cox being arrested and preliminarily charged with Level 4 felony sexual misconduct with a minor and Level 6 felony contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
The call initially came in around 8 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 19 that the minor was missing, either a runaway or a missing person.
“Obviously, we checked the area and couldn’t find her,” Putnam County Sheriff’s office Sgt. Brian Helmer said.
The trail might have gone cold from there had PCSO not received a call from a Pennsylvania man.
“Later that afternoon, a person from Pennsylvania called and advised that the night before, he was on a chat room on the internet and apparently this girl was in that chat room as well,” Helmer said. “He noticed that a guy out of Brazil, Ind., was talking to the female. When he called, he was concerned for her welfare.”
While the man did not have a name of the suspect, he was able to provide a picture. He shared this information with the Clay County Sheriff’s Department, with deputies able to use their sources to identify the man as Cox.
Helmer and Maj. Dwight Simmons then traveled to Brazil, where they joined the Clay sheriff’s deputies in visiting Cox’s home. When he would not answer his door, the Clay deputies applied for a search warrant.
When Cox would still not answer the door, they forced entry, finding both Cox and the missing teen.
Cox was taken into custody and booked into the Clay County Justice Center on the charges listed above. He is being held on a $25,000 cash bond, awaiting formal court proceedings.
It’s unclear if he will face any Putnam County charges, though Helmer said Det. Capt. Doug Nally will be checking with the Putnam County Prosecutor’s Office on that matter.
Helmer said he hopes the matter serves as an important reminder to parents of monitoring their children’s online activity.
“We want the emphasize the importance of parents knowing what their kids are doing online,” Helmer said. “If it hadn’t been for this guy from Pennsylvania letting us know, our chances of finding her are pretty slim.”
He added that he’s not sure how the case might have ended if not for one concerned phone call and a good relationship between police departments.
“Thank goodness we’ve got a good relationship with our Clay County partners,” Helmer said.