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| A motorist, having seen this poster, recognized two people walking on Highway 2 in Montana Thursday and alerted authorities, leading to the rescue of Jada Miller, 18, and the arrest of Patrick Kennedy, 25. |
Unknown to Jada, the 25-year-old Level II sex offender she chose to go off with had been convicted of two counts of first-degree rape of a child and third-degree child molestation. He was convicted in 2007 of preying on a young girl multiple times — the first time when his victim was just four years old. During a polygraph test he also admitted to sexually assaulting other young children.
His criminal history also includes residential burglary, third-degree theft, second-degree burglary and malicious mischief.
Concerned, Jada's mother, Julie, filed a missing person report with Bonners Ferry Police that culminated Thursday afternoon with Jada safe at home and Kennedy in custody.
A passer-by spotted Miller and Kennedy walking on Highway 2 near the Yaak campground and, recognizing them from a poster circulated on the Idaho side of the line, notified the Boundary County Sheriff's Office, who in turn notified the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office.
When deputies located the pair, Miller went to them, but Kennedy fled into the Kootenai National Forest, prompting a six-hour manhunt involving deputies from Lincoln and Boundary Counties along with personnel from the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Border Patrol and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks and included the use of tracking dogs and a helicopter.
While the search was underway, federal officers drove Miller back to Bonners Ferry and reunited her with her family.
On the Idaho side of the line, Old Highway 2 was shut down for about two hours as the search progressed.
It finally ended at around 4:45 p.m. in a remote area on the bank of the Kootenai River, where Kennedy was taken into custody after wisely deciding not to go for a swim.