A Springfield Missouri couple have received a lengthy prison term for grooming a teenage girl online before picking her up in Virginia and repeatedly sexually abusing her as they drove back to Springfield.
According to authorities, in 2024, Justin Curtright made first contact with the minor victim on Discord, which is an online video-chatting platform. He later introduced her to his wife and from then on the three talked extensively.
As directed by Justin, the victim’s family knew nothing about her contact with the Curtrights. Authorities say the Curtright’s engaged in sexually explicit acts on camera while video-chatting with the victim.
After weeks of planning the Curtright’s met the victim near her home in the summer of 2024. She got into the Curtright’s van and they drove her back to Missouri.
While making the trip back to Missouri from Virginia the Curtright’s took turns sexually abusing the victim in the back of their van and once they reached their apartment, the abuse continued for several more days.
Investigator’s obtained extensive Discord chat logs which revealed how the Curtright’s groomed and manipulated the victim.
Officers of the Springfield Police Department went to the Curtright’s apartment where they found the victim hiding in the back of the Curtright’s bedroom closet. Authorities say she had a fake I.D. that Justin Curtright gave her, falsely representing her as his daughter.
The Springfield Police Department seized the Curtright’s phones which held video of the victim’s online sexual exploitation as well as images of her abuse on the trip back to Missouri.
The chat logs also showed that Justin Curtright was actively seeking and sexually exploiting other children online.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Springfield Police Department, and various other local law enforcement agencies investigated this case.
(logo courtesy of Springfield Police Dept)