Tyler Reporter

A Texas man who allegedly kidnapped an Alabama girl he met online and sexually assaulted her could face federal criminal charges.

Daniel Skipworth, 19, is in the Smith County Jail on $550,000 bond after being indicted last June for aggravated sexual assault of a child, kidnapping, trafficking a child and engaging in forced sexual conduct, KETK reported.

At a recent hearing in Texas' 7th District Court, Skipworth's attorney, Brett Harrison, asked Judge Kerry Russell for a delay until Jan. 10 because of the possibility of federal charges since the alleged crimes occurred across state lines, KETK said.

The state charges would be dropped in the event of federal charges, lead state prosecutor Richard Vance said.

Russell granted the defense’s motion to delay the case but noted that keeping Skipworth in a Texas jail would be unfair to local citizens if he is ultimately tried by federal authorities.

Skipworth will be back in state court Jan. 10, the story said.

According to an arrest warrant, Skipworth met the victim through Instagram messages and in April drove 10 hours from Tyler, to Florence, Alabama, KETK reported.

The victim’s parents filed a missing person’s report the same day with the Florence Police Department. The FBI tracked the victim's cellphone until it was abandoned, the station said.

An FBI agent “further determined that the movements of [the victim’s] phone were traveling with another number, later determined to belong to Daniel Dylan Skipworth,” the arrest warrant said, according to KETK.

There are 313,453 victims of human and labor trafficking in Texas at any given time in Texas, according to a 2016 report from the University of Texas at Austin.