CHARLOTTE — A Charlotte man, Terrell West, is in custody after police accused him of raping a 15-year-old girl he met on Instagram and getting her pregnant.
According to court documents, the 30-year-old West allegedly told the victim he was 22 and threatened her if she reported the assaults to police. The victim met West on Instagram in September and reported that he raped her multiple times in 2024.
Andrew Oliver, CEO of Pat’s Place Child Advocacy Center, noted that social media platforms are increasingly being used by individuals with bad intentions to access children.
“Unfortunately, we’re seeing more and more cases where social media platforms like Instagram or Snapchat or Tiktok are really the venue that people are using who have bad intentions to gain access to children,” Oliver said.
The victim reported the assaults during a forensic interview at Pat’s Place Child Advocacy Center.
She stated that West recorded the assaults and threatened to post nude pictures of her if she went to the authorities.
“That usually starts out with an innocuous kind of hello message, and then those quickly kind of escalate to more flattery, can quickly escalate to inappropriate conversations, photo requests and threats,” Oliver said.
The situation came to light when the victim went to Atrium Main after her water broke prematurely, prompting involvement from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department.
“If they’re talking a lot about online friends that they’ve never met before, or they’re receiving unexpected gifts or money or messages from people they’ve never had any interaction with, that should be a red flag for parents everywhere,” Oliver said.
West has a history of assault charges dating back to 2012 and is currently held in Mecklenburg County Jail on a $2 million bond.
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