A Brooklyn man, Duane Taylor, has pleaded guilty to charges related to the kidnapping of a minor from Berks County in 2022. United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that Taylor, aged 50, entered his plea before United States District Court Judge John M. Gallagher. The charges stem from the abduction of a child from her home in Reading, Pennsylvania, and transporting her across state lines to New York.
In January 2023, Taylor faced a superseding indictment that included charges of kidnapping, travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct, production of child pornography, possession of child pornography, and transportation of child pornography. He pleaded guilty to all counts.
According to court documents, on August 31, 2022, police responded to a report from the child’s mother that her daughter was missing from their home in Reading. The mother last saw her daughter at around 10:30 p.m. the previous night. After searching for the child and discovering an open back door with a broken chain lock, law enforcement reviewed surveillance footage showing an individual entering the house around 2 a.m., leading to the second floor where the victim was last seen.
The footage later identified this individual as Taylor—the former boyfriend of the victim’s mother—who was seen leaving with the victim. Investigators coordinated with New York City Police Department officers who traced Taylor back to his residence in Brooklyn; however, they did not find the victim there initially. She was located later when a citizen reported seeing a child alone asking for help after being kidnapped from Pennsylvania.
Taylor is scheduled for sentencing on September 18 and could face up to life imprisonment.
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood—a national initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 aimed at combating child sexual exploitation and abuse through federal collaboration with state and local resources. The initiative focuses on locating offenders exploiting children online while identifying and rescuing victims.
The investigation involved efforts by the FBI alongside Reading Police Department and New York City Police Department officers under prosecution led by Assistant United States Attorneys Rosalynda M. Michetti and Josh A. Davison.
For more information about Project Safe Childhood initiatives visit projectsafechildhood.gov.
