LAGRANGE, MO. -- A northeast Missouri man is behind bars after authorities say he picked up a teenager from a local high school and took her across state lines for a sexual encounter.
Ronald Ray Shrader Jr., 34, of LaGrange, Mo., is charged with statutory rape and endangering the welfare of a child. He's being held in the Lewis County Jail on $10,000 cash only bond.
Lewis County authorities say officials from Highland High School contacted them Monday after a teacher noticed a 16-year-old female student voluntarily getting into a car in the school's parking lot. The teacher wrote down the Illinois license plate on the vehicle, which led authorities to Shrader; he told authorities he did not know the juvenile’s whereabouts.
The 16-year-old LaGrange girl was found in Quincy, Illinois and returned to Missouri.
Authorities arrested Shrader Tuesday and charged him with endangering the welfare of a child. Officials say they then learned Shrader and the juvenile girl allegedly had consensual sex after traveling to Quincy. It's also alleged the two had prior sexual encounters in Lewis County.
Shrader received the additional charge of statutory rape Wednesday.
The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office, LaGrange Police Department, Quincy Police Department and Adams County Sheriff’s Department took part in the investigation.