Fairborn police: Man told potential victim ‘May I say you are pretty?’

FAIRBORN — A man is denying allegations that he attempted to lure young girls near Baker Middle School in Fairborn.

Douglas Ray, 35, appeared Friday in Greene County Common Pleas Court and pleaded not guilty through his attorney to a fourth-degree felony charge of attempted abduction.

Ray, of Fairborn, was arrested Sept. 8 and was released from jail after paying 10 percent on a $200,000 bond, according to court records. He was indicted by a grand jury Sept. 14, and on Friday the arraignment judge allowed him to remain out on bond.

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According to Fairborn Police Det. Ryan Whittaker’s deposition, three girls ages 12 to 14 reported that a man in a gray sport utility vehicle approached them and asked questions as they were walking down the street. One of the girls positively identified the defendant from a photo line-up, the deposition said.

At least two incidents happened during daylight hours on Sept. 5 near Baker Middle School, and one incident, in which the 12-year-old victim was walking home from the library, was reported the following day, according to Whittaker’s deposition.

One victim reported that the suspect pulled up and asked her where Gilmore Street was, and after she said “no,” he made additional comments: “Well, may I say you are pretty” — “Can I give you any details about your body?” — “Can I get your phone number,” according to the detective’s deposition.

Two of the incidents were reported to have happened near Baker Middle School, court records showed. Another incident was reported to have happened as a girl said she was walking home from the Fairborn library.

Court records indicate a Fairborn officer spotted Ray driving and pulled him over on Sept. 6. The suspect denied the allegations, telling the officer he was at work in Kettering and does not know the location of Baker Middle School.

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Ray is being represented by Cincinnati-based attorney Mark Wieczorek.

After the arraignment hearing, Wieczorek issued a brief statement: “He vehemently denies any of these allegations. We’ve got some preliminary discovery. We plan on assessing the case, going through all of that … But he maintains his innocence. He has nothing to do with this.”

Danielle Riley, a parent of an eighth-grader, said she had heard about the incidents and saw a post with Ray’s photo on social media. Riley said she is always talking about being safe to her daughter., who “looks older than she is.”

“I tell her all the time, even when she walks out of school, ‘Try not to be by yourself, be with a friend’ … Even at 13 you still need to know your surroundings and know who you’re around to keep yourself safe,” Riley said.

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Riley said it’s scary that the suspect has been released from jail and not everyone has seen his face.

“How many people haven’t seen him? … Has he ever even gotten somebody? It’s a scary thought,” she said.

A hearing before the case goes to trial is set for Dec. 13.