Man charged with abduction, assault

Published 10:31 pm Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Wisconsin police have confirmed the arrest of a suspect in the abduction and assault of a Suffolk teenager.

Diehl

Diehl

Peter Alan Diehl, 31, faces felony charges of using a computer to facilitate a child sex crime, abduction of a child and sexual assault of a child, according to the Superior Telegram. If convicted, he faces a maximum combined sentence of 95 years in prison and fines of up to $250,000.

According to an account of the criminal complaint by the Superior Telegram, which Wisconsin police confirmed was accurate, Diehl met the 14-year-old victim through an online chat room.

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“The teen told him that she wanted to leave home, because she thought her mom would be happier if she did,” the Telegram reported.

According to the Telegram’s reporting of the criminal complaint, Diehl drove to Virginia, picked the victim up in a parking lot near her home on Aug. 16 and drove to a hotel in Hermantown, Minn. He then brought the teen to his residence in Superior, Wis.

The girl called her mother on Sept. 23 from a number that was traced to Diehl, according to the Telegram. Suffolk police called the police in Superior with that information, and the police in Wisconsin executed a search warrant on the residence.

A GPS unit and a receipt dated Aug. 12 from a convenience store in Raphine, Va., were located in Diehl’s car, according to the Telegram.

Detective Christopher Moe of the Superior Police Department said there is evidence the suspect was at the College Drive Walmart in Suffolk on Aug. 15 or 16. If anyone has any information or remembers seeing Diehl or his white Lexus with Minnesota plates, they are asked to contact Suffolk Police at 923-2350, Moe at 715-395-7678, or the FBI.

Diehl remains in custody at the Douglas County Jail in lieu of $100,000 cash bail, according to the Telegram. His next court appearance is Oct. 7.