A 7-year-old girl was abducted from her school bus stop in Zimmerman, Minnesota, on Wednesday and subsequently sexually assaulted at a hotel in Plymouth. The suspect, 28-year-old Joseph Andrew Bragg of International Falls, Minnesota, has been charged with kidnapping and first-degree criminal sexual assault of a child.
Bragg's trail began when he contacted the girl's mother through Facebook last month, claiming to be a relative of an associate. He asked her questions about herself, including if she had children, and expressed a desire to engage in activities with children. The mother ultimately blocked him on Facebook after discovering that Bragg was not a family member.
On Wednesday evening, the girl disappeared from her bus stop, prompting a massive search operation and an Amber Alert. Law enforcement investigators learned through their investigation that Bragg had access to a rented white 2025 Dodge Ram pickup truck, which he used to travel south towards the Iowa border. The vehicle was spotted at a gas pump in Albert Lea, Minnesota, around midnight.
A Lyft driver reported driving Bragg and the girl from his home residence in the Hamel/Corcoran area to a hotel in Plymouth. Hotel staff confirmed that Bragg had stayed in a room at the Ramada Inn, where he was later arrested by law enforcement. A search warrant was executed for the hotel room, which revealed unused diapers.
Bragg remains jailed on $4 million bail and has declined to give a statement to law enforcement. The investigation suggests that the girl was sexually assaulted while in Bragg's vehicle.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension superintendent, Drew Evans, commended the efforts of law enforcement and community volunteers who worked tirelessly to locate the missing girl. He emphasized the importance of parents teaching their children about strangers and how to stay safe, particularly when approached by someone they don't know.
The case highlights the dangers of social media interactions with unknown individuals and the need for vigilance in protecting our children from predators like Bragg. The fact that Bragg was able to contact the girl's mother through Facebook and gain her trust underscores the importance of being cautious online and verifying information before engaging with someone who claims to be a relative or friend.
Bragg's trail began when he contacted the girl's mother through Facebook last month, claiming to be a relative of an associate. He asked her questions about herself, including if she had children, and expressed a desire to engage in activities with children. The mother ultimately blocked him on Facebook after discovering that Bragg was not a family member.
On Wednesday evening, the girl disappeared from her bus stop, prompting a massive search operation and an Amber Alert. Law enforcement investigators learned through their investigation that Bragg had access to a rented white 2025 Dodge Ram pickup truck, which he used to travel south towards the Iowa border. The vehicle was spotted at a gas pump in Albert Lea, Minnesota, around midnight.
A Lyft driver reported driving Bragg and the girl from his home residence in the Hamel/Corcoran area to a hotel in Plymouth. Hotel staff confirmed that Bragg had stayed in a room at the Ramada Inn, where he was later arrested by law enforcement. A search warrant was executed for the hotel room, which revealed unused diapers.
Bragg remains jailed on $4 million bail and has declined to give a statement to law enforcement. The investigation suggests that the girl was sexually assaulted while in Bragg's vehicle.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension superintendent, Drew Evans, commended the efforts of law enforcement and community volunteers who worked tirelessly to locate the missing girl. He emphasized the importance of parents teaching their children about strangers and how to stay safe, particularly when approached by someone they don't know.
The case highlights the dangers of social media interactions with unknown individuals and the need for vigilance in protecting our children from predators like Bragg. The fact that Bragg was able to contact the girl's mother through Facebook and gain her trust underscores the importance of being cautious online and verifying information before engaging with someone who claims to be a relative or friend.
! I mean, how can someone like Bragg just walk around, pretending to be someone he's not, and take advantage of these precious kids? And the fact that Facebook played a role in it all is just wild 
. I'm all for online safety, but seriously, parents gotta keep an eye on their kids' activity & educate them about online predator protection 
. Law enforcement needs to be super vigilant too, especially with social media investigations 
. This case is a total wake-up call, and we need to spread awareness so no other kids have to go through what that little girl went through 
. And now we're left with the devastating reality of what happened to that poor kid 
. Let's all take a moment to think about our own kids' digital footprints and make sure they're being protected 
7 yrs old girl kidnapped & sexually assaulted 
Bragg's use of facebook to get close to the mom & then lure the kid is so manipulative & creepy 
he thought he could just block her after getting info but we all know that's not how it works 
law enforcement & community volunteers are heroes for finding the girl & bringing Bragg to justice 
this case is a reminder to be super cautious online & verify identities before engaging with strangers #JusticeForTheGirl #ProtectOurKids #SocialMediaSafetyMatters
and then she blocks him after finding out but it's too late for the poor girl... 
the fact that law enforcement was able to track him down is amazing though! 
they should give a huge round of applause to all the volunteers who helped find her too 
kids need to be taught how to stay safe online and what to do if someone they don't know approaches them 
This guy Bragg is literally sick and he's going to rot in prison. I'm so glad law enforcement was able to find the girl and keep her safe. The fact that this predator was able to gain trust with her mom through Facebook is just crazy. We need to be more careful online, people! Set those privacy settings and don't engage with anyone who seems suspicious. It's not worth it. And poor little girl, she's going to have PTSD for the rest of her life. This case is a reminder that we need to stay vigilant and protect our kids from predators like Bragg. They're just one wrong move away from disaster... 
. I mean, think about it - Bragg was able to make contact with the girl's mom through Facebook because they were connected online. But then he takes advantage of that connection and uses it for evil purposes 
. We need to be more aware of who we're interacting with online and make sure we're not sharing too much info about ourselves.
. By teaching them these skills, we can help prevent situations like this from happening in the first place.
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the guy who did this Bragg should get max time in prison no doubt about it he's got no right to touch anyone let alone a kid 
I'm glad the police were able to catch him and that mom was smart enough to block him on Facebook, maybe if more people do that too this kind of stuff won't happen to other kids 
. It's sad that parents have to teach their kids how to stay safe from people they don't know, it should never come to that 
it's not just about saying "don't talk to strangers"... they gotta show them how to block someone on fb if something feels off, or how to say no in person. 
That's like, total lifesaver right there.
But at the same time, I don't think we should be too quick to judge people without knowing their whole story. Maybe Bragg wasn't always like this? Maybe there was something triggering that led him down a bad path?
. And let me tell you, the fact that Bragg was able to create such a convincing fake relationship with this girl's mom on Facebook just shows us that we need stricter regulations on social media companies 
. We gotta start having these conversations at home, parents... we can't rely on the government or law enforcement to do it for us 
It's crazy how quickly they're growing up and using these platforms! Anyway, back to Bragg - I mean, it's just heartbreaking what happened to that little girl... 
I don't think so, fam! You gotta be more careful online, especially when you're a single parent. It's like, we should be teaching our kids about stranger danger but also how to protect themselves from online predators... and that's a lot of responsibility 