Man attempted to break into home to rape and kidnap child
A pedophile who flew from New Zealand to Virginia to kidnap and rape a child whom he groomed online, was shot in the throat by the young girl’s angry mother when he tried to break into their home.
25-year-old Troy Skinner traveled to Goochland County armed with a knife, pepper spray and duct tape with the intention of kidnapping the 14-year-old girl who he had snared on a gaming app.
Skinner, from Auckland, NZ had carefully planned the attack which involved flying halfway around the world and posing as a “hitchhiker who needed help,” according to Goochland County Sheriff Jim Agnew.
After failing to realize the child’s mother was home, Skinner smashed a glass door at the family’s home in Hollis Hills using a brick to try to force entry into the house.
Unbeknown to the attacker, the girl’s mother, who was, in fact, home at the time, grabbed a gun and shot Skinner twice in the throat.
According to Sheriff Agnew, Skinner refused to back down after entering the home and facing the armed mother, leaving her no choice other than to shoot, saying:
“All I can say is the manner in which he attempted to enter that home in the face of a firearm pointed at him and the implements we recovered from him – the only inference is that he had very bad intent.
“His arrival here was totally unexpected by anyone.
“He had been told in the past that the daughter no longer wished to communicate with him.”
Stuff NZ reports: The Goochland County sheriff said Skinner bought a knife and duct tape from Walmart after arriving in the US.
The girl’s mother saw a man trying to enter her home, warned him several times she had a gun, then fired after he broke the glass on the second door he tried to open.
Skinner was struck in the neck and remains hospitalized, authorities say.
Agnew continued:
“I have to emphasize very clearly, that while he may be … in the hospital [with a gunshot wound], he is not the victim.
“The lady [who shot Skinner to prevent him from entering] and her family members are the victims.”
New Zealand Police are aware of the incident and will assist the US Authorities as necessary.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade on Tuesday confirmed it was in touch with the family of Skinner and had offered consular assistance.
For privacy reasons no further information would be provided, a spokeswoman said.
Investigators believe Skinner’s actions were part of a clearly planned trip from New Zealand, the Times-Dispatch reports.
Damage cause to home by man when he threw brick through glass door @CBS6 pic.twitter.com/zwfqFuUvWY
— Melissa J. Hipolit (@MelissaCBS6) June 25, 2018
Knife was found in his possession which he had recently purchased along with a receipt. pic.twitter.com/B6LvR1dsID
— Kirk Nawrotzky (@KirkNawrotzky) June 25, 2018
This is Troy Skinner from New Zealand who attempted to enter a Goochland home and was shot by the mother inside. pic.twitter.com/xicCKGpzlz
— Kirk Nawrotzky (@KirkNawrotzky) June 25, 2018
Skinner first made contact with the Goochland girl three to four months earlier via Discord, a voice-over-internet app that allows video-gamers to communicate via their personal device.
US authorities have traced Skinner’s movements back to a flight from Auckland, New Zealand, at 6.05am on Wednesday, June 20 to Sydney, Australia.
From there, Skinner boarded a 9.25am flight to Los Angeles.
He took a third flight at 9.40pm to Washington DC, and then caught a Greyhound bus at 8.35am to Richmond, Virginia, 175 kilometers south of Washington DC.
The Times-Dispatch reports that a neighbor saw a man in black clothing about 2.30pm cross the road near Steeplechase Parkway, where the mother and daughter lived.
Two hours later, authorities received a phone call about a man wearing black trying to break into the family’s home.
Agnew said the mother was downstairs with one of her daughters when Skinner knocked on the front door, but she did not go to the door.
“They thought that was the end of it until they saw him at the back basement door, which is situated under the deck.”
“He got a brick and attempted to break that door down,” the sheriff said.
Agnew said Skinner would be charged with breaking and entering with a deadly weapon with the intent commit a serious crime.
It wasn’t immediately known if Skinner has an attorney.
WHAT IS DISCORD?
Discord is a free voice and chat service, with one website describing it as “essentially Skype for gamers.”
It is designed to help players communicate and coordinate through private servers.
CNET reported the service had benefitted from the popularity of games like Fortnite and PUBG.
It was the easiest voice chat service to use and was easy to scale for text and voice chat across huge gaming communities.
READ MORE: Mom Catches Pedophile Trying to Rape Child, Blows His Head Of with Shotgun