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Worcester man charged with human trafficking, sexual assault of 14-year-old

A Worcester man was arrested Friday for the alleged human trafficking of a 14-year-old girl.

According to police, 22-year-old Luis Santos met the girl, who lived in El Salvador at the time, over Facebook.  Santos allegedly spent $5,000 to have the girl illegally smuggled into the United States.

The girl arrived in Worcester mid-December and moved into Santos' apartment. Though the girl reportedly said she did not want a romantic relationship with Santos, police say Santos forced the girl to sleep in the same bed with him. Police say Santos sexually touched the girl against her will.

For the first three weeks of staying with Santos, police say the girl wasn't allowed to attend school. Police say the girl was locked in her bedroom and wasn't allowed to use the phone.

Once the girl was allowed to leave the house, she reached out to family friends from El Salvador living in Worcester and went to stay with them.

Police contacted Santos and spoke with him. He was then arrested and charged with kidnapping, rape of a child with force, human trafficking of a minor, and three counts of indecent assault and battery on a person 14 or older.