The MTV star, 31, Connor Smith who appeared in the show “ARE YOU THE ONE?” in 2015 was charged in Cook County, Illinois, with the crime of rape and sexual battery of 16 years old girl, as well as two charges of criminal confinement on December 10th.
On December 17, he was arrested in Chicago and brought to the Cook County Jail, where he is being held without bail pending extradition to Lake County. On July 16, the reported incident occurred.
Smith starred in the MTV dating show “Are You the One?” in 2015, which followed a group of singles looking for love who all moved in together. The contestants were paired off into ideal couples thanks to a matchmaking algorithm, and their task was to determine the chosen couples, with a prize of up to $1 million to be shared among the contestants if they could correctly identify all of the couples. His MTV bio described the 6ft 8in reality star as a “gentle giant” who was looking to find his soul mate.
What has been claimed by the victim?
The girl, who has not yet been identified, informed police she met a man named “Champ” on the Omegle app, an online chat website, before they started chatting on Snapchat. She provided him with the address of her Hobart relatives’ house. The victim told police she was abducted from her room in July after visiting family in Indiana.
She allegedly told cops that Connor allegedly broke open her bedroom window screen, dragged her from her room, and tossed her into his truck that evening. She added that while driving to an Indiana motel, Connor, who appeared on season three of “Are You the One?” in 2015, sexually assaulted her in the truck.
When she refused to take off her clothing and requested Smith to let her go after they arrived at the hotel, Smith allegedly slapped and assaulted her inside the room. She claimed she was mostly undressed when Smith reportedly dragged her into the bathroom by her hair and urinated on her.
He then allegedly dragged the girl back to the bed, where he sexually assaulted her, forced her to perform a sex act, and strangled her for resisting.
Smith allegedly told the girl that he would return the next night after dropping her off at the corner near her relatives’ house. Several of her relatives were outside looking for the teen, and when he drove away, they began chasing his truck.
The girl was reportedly able to escape, and police arrested Connor after her family gave them his license plate details. After the girl’s family revealed his license plate number, police were able to identify Smith. He was a “possible match” with the teen’s sexual assault kit, according to DNA tests.
What do we know so far about the investigation?
Although the girl first claimed Smith dragged her out of a home window by her hair prior to the alleged rape, she later admitted she made up that part of the incident to avoid getting in trouble for sneaking out of the house.
The Cook County Sheriff’s Office and the Lake County Prosecutor’s Office did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for information regarding the charges. It’s unclear at this time if Smith has obtained an attorney to comment on his behalf.
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