Man Suspected of Text and Sex With 13-Year-Old

A 31-year-old Santa Monica man suspected of having underage sex with a girl he met using a mobile texting application has been arrested.

The alleged assault, described only as "ongoing" in a press release issued Thursday night by the Santa Monica Police Department, began in September when Brian Anthony Marks met the 13-year-old girl using a popular application similar to an online chatroom, Sgt. Richard Lewis said. 

Marks was taken into custody after police executed a search warrant Tuesday at his Santa Monica home, concluding a three-week investigation.

He was booked into the Santa Monica jail on suspicion of lewd and lascivious acts with a child and unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor. Bail was set at $500,000.

Lewis said investigators believe there might be additional victims.

"Given the possibility that this crime was not a singular event, the Santa Monica Police Department is asking anyone else who may have been victimized by Marks to immediately report it to the Santa Monica Police Department," he said.

At the time this article was published, no criminal charges were pending against Marks in the Los Angeles Superior Court's online database.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Leslie Trapnell at (310) 458-2256, Sgt. Renaldi Thruston at (310) 458-8414 or the Santa Monica Police Department's 24/7 line at (310) 458-8495.

To remain anonymous, call WeTip at 1-800-78-CRIME (1-800-78-27463), or submit the tip online at wetip.com.  Tipsters will remain completely anonymous and may be eligible for a reward, up to $1,000, if the information leads to an arrest and conviction.

Callers can also contact Crime Stoppers by either calling (800) 222-TIPS, texting from a mobile phone, or by visiting lacrimestoppers.org. Callers may remain anonymous and may qualifu to receive a $1,000 reward from Crime Stoppers.