Family Friend Held in Rape and Beating of Utah Girl, 11

An 11-year-old girl was kidnapped from her bedroom Monday by a man who raped and beat her in her backyard before he was captured, police said.

Javier Sickler, a former high school classmate of the girl’s father, was arrested after officers found him attacking the girl in suburban Midvale, police Sgt. John Salazar said.

The girl, who police said was probably beaten with a hammer, was in critical condition.

Salazar said he didn’t know of any connection between Sickler and 14-year-old Elizabeth A. Smart, who was abducted in June from a bedroom she shared with her 9-year-old sister in their Salt Lake City home. Elizabeth has not been found.

Sickler told police he remembered banging on the door of the victim’s house and nothing else, according to Salazar.

“He’s claiming he had a blackout,” Salazar said. Police said Sickler, 28, and the girl’s father had renewed their friendship in the last few weeks.

Salazar said the attacker slipped into the home through an unlocked side door and went into the bedroom the girl shares with her 10-year-old brother. Police said the intruder asked the boy where his father slept, then kidnapped the girl.

The boy didn’t feel threatened, and there was no indication of a struggle, Salazar said. The children’s father and their grandparents were asleep in the home.

A few minutes later, a neighbor called police and reported hearing moaning outside. Salazar said two officers found a man beating the girl with a blunt object, likely a hammer.

The man ran toward his car until a police dog stopped him, police said.