Mesa school custodian arrested for luring minor for sex over 3 years
Sep 25, 2018, 8:21 AM | Updated: 6:26 pm
(MCSO photo)
PHOENIX — A former custodian at Dobson High School in Mesa has been arrested for allegedly luring a young girl for sex over the course of three years.
In court documents released Monday, the girl told police that Jordon Horne, 22, first contacted her through Facebook in 2014; She was 12 at the time and he was 18.
Over the next three years, Horne pressured the girl to exchange graphic photos and sexual messages and initiated an in-person meeting on three occasions.
Horne was charged with two counts of luring a minor for sexual exploitation. He will appear in court next on Thursday for an arraignment.
During those meetings, the girl told police, Horne would grope her and attempt to put his hands down her pants. On the third meeting, Horne allegedly told the girl that he wanted to have sexual intercourse with her but did not.
In addition to the sexually graphic exchanges, the girl also said that Horne pressured her into a “romantic” relationship and emotionally manipulated the girl into thinking he would post her photos if he was mad at her.
The girl also told police that she told him “multiple times how young she was and [she] had no doubt he knew her age.”
Court documents said the allegations of the sexual contact could not be independently verified and that there was no record showing an exchange of the photos, despite admitting to possessing nude images of the victim in the past.
In a statement to KTAR News 92.3 FM, Mesa Public Schools spokeswoman Helen Hollands said the district worked with Chandler Police to facilitate Horne’s arrest after law enforcement contacted the district about an arrest warrant on Sept. 18.
Hollands said Horne passed a background check when he was first hired in October of last year. He is no longer employed by the district.