Ohio man arrested in Cedar City for allegedly kidnapping a California girl

CEDAR CITY — An Ohio man was found Wednesday at a Cedar City gas station with a California teen who had been reported kidnapped.

Ryan Gray Patch, 27, of Ohio, was booked into the Iron County Jail on suspicion of felony charges of aggravated kidnapping, endangerment of a child, and misdemeanor charges of possession of marijuana/spice and possession of drug paraphernalia, according to the police affidavit.

On Tuesday night, the Cedar City Communications Center received a call from a California mother claiming her 15-year-old daughter was taken from her home in San Diego and could be in Ceder City.

According to the affidavit, the mother said her daughter met with Patch online, and he took her from their home early Tuesday morning.

“The parents told dispatch that their daughter was in communication with them and was able to give them a description of her location and told them that she was by the Loves’ Travel Plaza in Cedar City, Utah,” the affidavit stated.

The mother said her daughter could see semi trucks and a church belonging to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The daughter told her mom that she was with Patch in a black Honda Civic and said he was wearing all-black clothing and had “golden hair,” according to the affidavit.

The mother also reported that Patch hit her daughter and made her smoke marijuana to make her disoriented. The daughter said Patch was armed with a knife.

According to the affidavit, Iron County sheriff deputies responded to the Love’s Travel Plaza and found a car matching the daughter’s description with an Ohio license plate. The affidavit reported finding a man asleep in the driver’s seat with the girl in the back seat.

“As I was passing the vehicle, the male appeared to wake up and sat up in the seat. I found that the driver matched the description that the female had given earlier,” the affidavit stated.

The Iron County deputy pulled behind the car and had the man, later identified as Patch, exit the vehicle. He was taken into police custody without further incident.

The affidavit reported the victim was found in Patch’s backseat and transported to the Children’s Justice Center for an interview.

According to the affidavit, a K-9 unit performed a drug search and indicated that drugs were inside Patch’s car. After getting a search warrant, police found marijuana vape cartridges and a knife.

Detectives interviewed Patch, who reportedly admitted he and the victim were traveling through Nevada, and the girl told him she was 15 years old.

“Instead of contacting the authorities or taking the juvenile home, (Patch) continued to drive further away from her house and parents,” the affidavit stated. “He also admitted that in the beginning, he was suspicious of her age and asked for an identification to verify her age. She never sent proof of her age.”

The affidavit stated that the victim refused to be interviewed by police.