FREEHOLD – An Asbury Park man has been sentenced to 20 years in state prison for luring and kidnapping a then-11-year-old girl off the street in 2023, Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond S. Santiago announced Wednesday.
Raquan M. Folk, 31, must serve at least 85 percent of the sentence before the possibility of parole, in accordance with New Jersey’s No Early Release Act (NERA), pursuant to the terms set by Monmouth County Superior Court Judge Paul X. Escandon during a hearing held Friday.
Shortly before 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 30, 2023, the victim was walking on Ridge Avenue in Asbury Park when a man later identified as Folk pulled up to her in a vehicle and convinced her to get inside, according to an investigation led by Detective Kayla Santiago of the MCPO Special Victims Bureau and Detective Scott Ritter of the Asbury Park Police Department.
Folk then drove her to Neptune Township, stopped the vehicle, and told the victim to disrobe, prompting her to ask to use a bathroom. The victim then ran from the car, flagged down a passerby, and was taken to the Neptune Township Police Department. Folk was taken into custody without incident days later and transported to the Monmouth County Correctional Institution (MCCI), where he has remained incarcerated.
Following an eight-day January trial featuring testimony by the victim, Folk was found guilty by a jury of first-degree Kidnapping, second-degree Luring a Child, and third-degree Endangering the Welfare of a Child.
“This case represented every parent’s worst nightmare,” Prosecutor Santiago said. “Earning justice for the victim and the Asbury Park community at large was an imperative, and we hope this sentence sends an unequivocal message regarding the degree to which this sort of conduct cannot be tolerated.”
This case was prosecuted by MCPO Assistant Prosecutor Keri-Leigh Schaefer. Folk has been represented by Paul Zager, Esq., with an office in Red Bank.
