Couple charged in sex assault of runaway teen, 15

AUSTIN (KXAN) - A 15-year-old runaway girl from Irving, Texas, was befriended by a man and woman who took her to an Austin hotel on Monday where she was sexually assaulted.

The incident happened at the Budget Inn, located at 9106 N. Interstate Highway 35.

APD Detective Brent Kelly says, "These were two strangers that she had met and being a child she had no idea what she was getting into."

The girl was able to get away from the hotel room when she asked if she could go outside for a walk after she got sick, according to the police affidavit. She flagged down a hotel security guard, who in turn, flagged down an Austin Police Department officer, who talked to the girl in the hotel parking lot.

The woman, identified as Tasha Morrison, 25, walked through the parking lot while the victim was being interviewed by APD, and the victim pointed her out to the police officer, who detained Morrison.

Police took the victim, Morrison and the man, identified as Eric Conner, 34, to the APD Child Abuse Unit for additional interrogation.

Morrison admitted to police that she was involved in the assault in having forced the girl to perform a sexual act, according to the affidavit. Morrison told police she and Conner had a personal relationship.

Conner never provided a statement to police, according to the affidavit, though APD was able to confirm his identity based on the victim's initial information about his tattoos and what he was wearing before police found him in the hotel room.

Conner and Morrison are both charged with sexual assault of a child, a second-degree felony. They are both being held in Travis County Jail on $125,000 bond each.

Detective Kelly says, "Children are taken advantage of because they're so young and naive. It's our responsibility as adults and parents to step up and be more proactive in their lives to prevent things like this from happening."