53-Year-Old Man Batters 12-Year-Old Runaway Girl

Deltona, FL – A 53-year-old man is now facing charges after sexually battering a 12-year-old runaway girl. Brian Young was arrested by Volusia Sheriff’s deputies after the girl told investigators about an incident that occurred near Green Springs Park.  The girl, who had run away from the First United Methodist Children’s Home (FUMCH), was found by deputies in August 2021. Reports say the girl made statements about taking her own life and was placed under a Baker Act. While she was being transported for an evaluation, the girl mentioned that she was sexually battered after she left a transient camp in the woods. She couldn’t provide any witnesses, and a search of the area yielded no additional leads. But as investigators worked to locate potential suspects, they met Young, who lived in a camp in the area. A sexual assault kit was submitted to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. A December report revealed that foreign DNA, likely from a male, was obtained from the kit and entered into the FBI’s database. After detectives were notified that the DNA matched Young, the Volusia Sheriff’s Office Child Exploitation Unit was able to secure an arrest warrant for Young on a charge of sexual battery of a child. He was taken into custody on Thursday (Feb. 3) and was additionally charged with fentanyl and drug paraphernalia possession. The same week this occurred, Sheriff Mike Chitwood and others appeared before the Volusia County Council to discuss plans for a Juvenile Assessment Center that is expected to improve services for juveniles who encounter law enforcement. The council earmarked about $5.4 million in federal relief funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to launch Family Resource Center in Daytona Beach. The facility will be open 24/7. There, law enforcement can connect juveniles directly with the programs and services they might need.  The facility will be staffed by deputies, members of the Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ), mental health professionals, social workers from the Department of Children and Families and staff from Volusia County Schools. The $5.4 million in funding covers necessary modifications to the building, which sits on Red John Drive, and four years of sheriff’s office operations. The discussion to bring the center to fruition grew louder in 2021 after 14-year-old Nicole Jackson and a 12-year-old boy, both runaways from FUMCH, broke into a home and opened fire on deputies with weapons they found.