Missing South Carolina Child Found Shaking in Arkansas Bathroom; Couple Held on $1 Million Bonds

SPARTANBURG COUNTY, S.C. — What began as a report of a missing 12 year-old child in South Carolina has developed into a multi-state investigation involving allegations of online grooming, kidnapping and sexual assault — and court records are now providing a clearer picture of how investigators say the child was lured hundreds of miles from home.

The girl was reported missing from the Woodruff area of Spartanburg County shortly after 5:45 p.m. on Sept. 8, after she was last seen around 4 p.m. near Arnold Road and Highway 101.

Investigators initially considered the possibility that she had run away.

That changed quickly.

According to Spartanburg County Sheriff Bill Rhyne, investigators uncovered evidence indicating the child had allegedly been groomed through social media before being taken from South Carolina.

Surveillance footage showed the girl walking along Highway 101. Additional video obtained by investigators later showed her getting into a dark-colored Chevrolet Malibu shortly before 4:30 p.m.

Investigators identified the vehicle and began following its movements through license-plate reader information.

The trail led west.

Authorities detected the vehicle in Alabama before receiving another hit in Arkansas the following day.

That information ultimately led South Carolina investigators to Independence County, Arkansas, where deputies were asked to check the Batesville-area residence connected to the vehicle’s registered owner.

Deputies find child inside Arkansas home

When deputies arrived at the residence on Sept. 9, court records say 31-year-old Brandon Lee Britten acknowledged that the missing South Carolina child was inside.

What happened next is described in an affidavit filed by Independence County Sheriff’s Lt. Zach Rawlins.

Rawlins alleged that Sierra Dawn Britten, 28, refused to identify herself and went back inside the residence.

According to the affidavit, Sierra then attempted to prevent Rawlins from proceeding farther into the house as he searched for the missing child.

Rawlins said he had to physically remove Sierra from his path.

He continued through the residence.

In a back bathroom, he found the missing 12-year-old.

According to Rawlins, the girl was standing with her face and hands toward the wall and was visibly shaking.

After Rawlins identified himself as a law-enforcement officer, the affidavit says the child thanked him for finding her and said she wanted her mother.

She had been located roughly 700 miles from home.

Investigators allege child believed she was meeting a 15-year-old boy

The investigation did not end with the rescue.

During a subsequent forensic interview at a child safety center, investigators say the girl described approximately a month of online communication before leaving South Carolina.

According to court records, she allegedly believed she was communicating with a 15-year-old boy with whom she was going to have a relationship.

Investigators allege the girl believed Sierra Britten was that teenager’s roommate.

Instead, authorities allege Brandon and Sierra Britten were behind the communications that ultimately resulted in the child leaving South Carolina and traveling to Arkansas.

Investigators further allege the child was sexually assaulted after arriving at the Arkansas residence.

CC News is not publishing the graphic allegations contained in the affidavit because they involve a 12-year-old child.

However, the affidavit states that evidence obtained during a search of the residence and during the child’s medical examination corroborated portions of what she told investigators.

Authorities allege Sierra helped arrange the trip

The allegations against Sierra Britten go considerably beyond simply being present at the residence.

According to investigators, Sierra initially said she believed the girl was 18 years old but later allegedly acknowledged believing she was 14.

Investigators also allege there had been video calls and an exchange of sexually explicit images before the trip.

Perhaps most significantly, authorities allege Sierra helped plan the trip from Arkansas to South Carolina.

According to the affidavit, Sierra allegedly arranged the timing around her own work schedule so Brandon could use the vehicle to travel to South Carolina.

Investigators allege that after the child was brought back to Arkansas, Brandon took her into a bedroom while Sierra went to sleep in another room.

Those allegations form part of the basis for prosecutors charging Sierra as an accomplice rather than treating her simply as a witness to what allegedly occurred.

$1 million bond for each defendant

Brandon Britten has been charged in Arkansas with rape, internet stalking of a child and traveling for an unlawful sex act with a minor.

Sierra Britten faces accomplice charges connected to those alleged offenses.

Circuit Judge Kimberly Edington found probable cause to proceed with the cases.

Bond was set at $1 million for each defendant.

Both have been held in the Independence County Detention Center.

Meanwhile, authorities in Spartanburg County have obtained a kidnapping warrant for Brandon Britten in connection with the child’s disappearance from South Carolina.

The FBI has also been involved in the investigation, and authorities previously said possible federal charges were being considered. As of Sept. 24, CC News has not identified a publicly announced federal indictment in the case.

Flock cameras played critical role

The case also highlights the role license-plate reader technology played in finding the child.

Once investigators identified the Chevrolet Malibu, Flock Safety cameras helped authorities follow the vehicle’s movements across state lines.

Sheriff Rhyne has credited the technology with helping investigators locate the girl.

But there is another side to that story.

Authorities have said a Flock camera in the Woodruff area that potentially could have provided investigators with information sooner had been damaged.

The Highway 101 camera reportedly had been out of service since July, and several cameras in the Woodruff system had experienced damage.

Despite that setback, investigators eventually tracked the vehicle through other camera hits — first westward and ultimately into Arkansas.

Within roughly 24 hours of investigators identifying the vehicle, deputies were at the Arkansas residence.

The child was alive.

“She wanted her mama”

Following her recovery, the girl was taken to a Children’s Advocacy Center and later to the Arkansas Sheriff’s Youth Ranch while authorities coordinated her return to South Carolina.

She was reunited with her parents on Sept. 10.

For all of the technology, surveillance footage, interstate coordination and criminal allegations surrounding the case, one detail from the deputy’s affidavit captures what investigators found when they finally reached her.

A 12-year-old girl, hundreds of miles from home, was standing in a bathroom shaking.

When she realized the person who had entered the room was a law-enforcement officer there to find her, investigators say she thanked him.

Then she told him what she wanted.

She wanted her mama.

The investigation remains ongoing.

Brandon Lee Britten and Sierra Dawn Britten have been charged with crimes. The allegations contained in court documents have not been proven at trial, and both defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

About the Author

James Seidel

Administrator

About the CC News Network James Seidel: Publisher, Award Winning Journalist, Author. Investigator, Podcaster, Talk Show Host, and Music Producer. The CC News Network is a distinguished media company in the world of South Carolina News, Weather, Sports and True Crime. At the beginning, James Seidel was only known as Crime and Cask and well known for his relentless pursuit of truth and justice in the Alex Murdaugh trial. As a journalist, author, investigator, radio talk show host, and record producer he has made significant contributions to uncovering some of the most complex and high-profile criminal cases of our time.

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