Teen Charged in Rape at Maryland State Fair: Police

A Carroll County teen is charged with rape and multiple other offenses related to the alleged sexual abuse of a 9-year-old girl at the Maryland State Fair, according to the Baltimore County Police Department.

Jonathan Fleming, 17, of the 200 block of Montgomery Avenue in Mount Airy, is charged as an adult with second-degree rape, second-degree sex offense, fourth-degree sex offense, perverted practice and second-degree assault in connection with an incident reported Thursday, according to police.

Fleming’s family and the victim’s family were friends who often traveled together to fairs, police reported. Both live in Carroll County, according to the report.

A farmer notified the 9-year-old girl’s father about a situation in the swine barn Thursday as the families were getting set up for the fair in the 2200 block of York Road in Timonium, police reported.

The girl’s father alerted police, according to the report.

The child told police Fleming touched her at the Cow Palace inappropriately, then moved to the more secluded swine barn and a trailer that the boy’s family owned, where he forced her to perform a variety of sex acts for approximately 15 to 20 minutes, including intercourse, the report stated.

The victim said the alleged sex abuse had been going on since she was 3 years old at various fairs in and outside of Maryland, according to the report.

Additional charges may be brought against Fleming, and the investigation into the allegations of prior sexual abuse is continuing, police said.

Fleming is being held at the Baltimore County Detention Center on $500,000 bond, according to the report.

Photo courtesy of the Baltimore County Police Department.