Kidnapping Victim Helps Orchestrate Her Own Rescue By Holding Up Sign Saying 'Help Me'

A 13-year-old girl was rescued after holding up a sign from the window of Steven Robert Sablan’s car in a Long Beach, California parking lot.

In this undated photo released by the U.S Department of Justice is a sign that says "Help Me!" used by a 13-year-old girl who was kidnapped in San Antonio, Texas.

A 13-year-old girl was rescued after holding up a sign from the window of Steven Robert Sablan’s car in a Long Beach, California parking lot.

Photo by: U.S. Department of Justice

U.S. Department of Justice

On July 6, 2023, a 13-year-old girl walking along a street in San Antonio was kidnapped by Steven Robert Sablan, a 62-year-old man from Cleburne, Texas. He drove up to her and raised a handgun. The Associated Press reported he then warned her, “If you don’t get in the car with me, I am going to hurt you.” She was rescued three days later after holding up a “Help Me” sign from the window of Sablan’s car in a parking lot in Long Beach, California.

Sablan has now pleaded guilty to kidnapping the 13-year-old girl at gunpoint. He admitted to driving her to California, threatening her with a firearm, and sexually assaulting her multiple times, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California. He has been held in federal custody since July 2023.

Sablan confessed to abducting the victim and driving her nearly 1,400 miles to California in his gray Nissan Sentra. He used a gun to control her during the ordeal, according to his plea agreement. He had no legal custody of the teen and didn’t have a familiar relationship to her.

On July 9, when Sablan went into a laundromat in Long Beach, the young girl held up a handwritten “Help Me” sign as a plea for help in the window of Sablan’s car. A passerby saw it, acknowledged the sign, and called 911.

Officers from the Long Beach Police Department soon arrived and found the victim. She mouthed “help” to them from inside the car. She was “visibly emotional and distressed”, revealed a press release from the LBPD. They also located Sablan and arrested him. He was taken to the Long Beach City Jail, and he was booked for “kidnapping, lewd and lascivious acts with a child, and fugitive from justice.”

Sablan has been retained in police custody since his arrest. A sentencing hearing has been scheduled for Oct. 25. According to PEOPLE, he will face a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in federal prison and a statutory maximum sentence of life in prison.

Next Up

Kidnapped Girl Who Chewed Off Restraints To Escape Led Authorities To Find Two Dead Bodies

A 12-year-old Alabama girl escaped her kidnapper on August 1, 2022, leading police to discover the deceased bodies of a 29-year-old woman and a 14-year-old boy.

Arizona Woman Helps Save Herself During Kidnapping By Passing Note To A Stranger

After being kidnapped by a man disguised as an Uber driver, a woman helped save herself by passing a note to a stranger at an Arizona gas station asking them to call 911.

How Convicted Pedophile Larry Nassar Escaped Justice For So Long

“He in fact is, was, and forever shall be, a child molester, and a monster of a human being,” one victim says of the disgraced doctor.

5 Facts To Know About The Tragic Kidnapping & Murder Of Adam Walsh

Ottis Toole claimed that he abducted Adam Walsh in a Sears mall parking lot after luring him with candy and toys.

Former Pastor Charged After Confessing To Abducting, Killing 8-Year-Old Girl In 1975

The 1975 disappearance and murder of 8-year-old Gretchen Harrington remained a devastating mystery for her family and loved ones for nearly five decades until July 2023 when an arrest was finally made.

How The Abduction And Murder Of A 9-Year-Old Led To The AMBER Alert System

The AMBER alert system first debuted in 1996 as a collaboration between news media and police in Arlington, Texas. Named for Amber Hagerman, the alerts have helped find more than 1,000 abducted children.

Man Arrested After Tech CEO Found Murdered In Her Baltimore Apartment

Pava LaPere, a rising tech star in her twenties, was murdered in her Baltimore home. After a few days on the run, Jason Dean Billingsley, 32, was arrested and charged with her murder.

New Trial Date Set For Accused Murderer Of 14-Year-Old Wendy Jerome

Back in 1984, a 14-year-old was murdered while walking to her friend’s house to deliver a birthday card. Now, after nearly 40 years, her alleged murderer was identified through DNA and faces trial.

'Zombie Hunter' Sentenced To Death For Murdering Two Women In The 1990s

A man who referred to himself as the ‘Zombie Hunter’ has been sentenced to death for the separate murders of two young women in the 1990s.

Actor Danny Masterson Sentenced To 30 Years To Life For Rape

In June 2023, the 'That ‘70s Show' actor was found guilty on two of three counts of rape.