West Virginia State Police received a report of a sexual assault on Wednesday, July 12 at about 8 p.m. from the mother of the victim, a resident of Hedgesville.
According to a criminal complaint filed in Morgan County Magistrate Court by Trooper Harmon, the suspect, identified as Jessey A. Messner, 30, of Berkeley Springs, drove two juveniles around Berkeley and Morgan counties, stopping to purchase alcohol four or five times at gas stations including Sheetz and Liberty.
The victim’s father later found the minor barely conscious on an embankment near their home.
Police gathered evidence leading to the arrest of Messner, charging him with second-degree sexual assault on one of the juveniles.
Messner was released from jail on a $100,000 bond, and is awaiting a hearing.