Screaming Girl Leads Cops To Man Who Assaulted Her In Car: Bergen County Prosecutor

BERGEN COUNTY, NJ — A teenage girl's screams led police to the scene of a sexual assault Wednesday, prosecutors said.

On Wednesday Oakland Police responded to a report of someone screaming in the area of Ramapo Valley Road and East Oak Street and found a teenage girl who'd had an "altercation" with a man in a vehicle, prosecutors said.

Police found the vehicle and driver, Elmer Barranco, 22, "and observed that he was under the influence of alcohol," prosecutors said.

After an investigation, detectives determined that Barranco, who knew the victim, had sexually assaulted and endangered her inside the vehicle both in Oakland and in Clifton on Thursday, prosecutors said.

Barranco was arrested in Oakland and charged with two counts of second-degree sexual assault, two counts of third-degree endangering the welfare of a child, and two counts of fourth-degree criminal sexual contact.

He was also issued summonses for several motor vehicle violations, prosecutors said.

He was taken to the Bergen County Jail to await a first appearance in Bergen County Superior Court in Hackensack, prosecutors said.