By Tom Tracy
A brave Gravesend girl abducted by a convicted sex offender helped police track down and arrest her attacker, officials said this week. Officials said that although terrorized, the 12-year-old managed to re-trace the route 46-year-old William Davis took to Ardsley, New York, where he allegedly sexually assaulted her. The girl told investigators that she was walking around Gravesend, reportedly looking for a cell phone she had lost in the street on the afternoon of December 28 when Davis walked up to her, claiming to be a cop. Davis offered to help her look for the phone, lured her into his car and took her out of the borough. The 46-year-old took the girl all the way to a motel in Ardsley, where the alleged sex assault took place. Hours later, Davis returned the girl to Gravesend, where she immediately told her father what had happened. Members of the NYPD’s Child Abuse Squad joined forces with Westchester authorities when it was determined that Davis had taken the girl out of the city. With the assistance of the girl’s keen memory, investigators brought the girl all the way back to Ardsley, where Davis’ name was found in the hotel ledger. Officials from the Ardsley Police Department arrested Davis on January 5, charging him with committing a criminal sexual act in the first degree. He was remanded to jail following his arraignment, officials said. Davis, a resident of West 148th Street in Harlem, is registered as a level three sex offender. Prosecutors said he was convicted in 1991 for sodomizing two young girls, ages 10 and 8, and was released on parole in 2000. His parole ended in 2002, officials said.
