# Truck Stop Staff Helps Smithton, Pa. Police Rescue Girl



## kwflatbed (Dec 29, 2004)

*The Associated Press*

A truck driver was in custody Monday, accused of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old runaway during a cross-country trip, after truck stop employees stalled the man until police arrived.
The girl told a waitress Saturday at the Flying J travel plaza along Interstate 70 that she had left her California home without her mother's knowledge and was driven across the country by a trucker, state police said.
"She was crying," said waitress Emily Morris, 25.
Morris said she helped the girl hide and let her call her mother and 911.
When truck driver Joseph Simon came looking for the girl, Flying J workers pretended to help him look for her until police showed up, officers said.
Simon, 37, of Los Angeles, was in custody on charges of indecent assault, corruption of minors and unlawful contact with a minor. There was no immediate indication if he had an attorney.
Smithton is about 25 miles southeast of Pittsburgh.








Copyright 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


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