Marquis Smith, 22, was accused of kidnapping the girl on Chambers Street and keeping her in an attic for four days.
Marquis Smith is accused of kidnapping a 15-year-old girl off a Trenton street and holding her captive for four days in an attack while he attacked and molested her, police said. Marquis Smith, 22, was accused of kidnapping the Trenton girl on Chambers Street and keeping her in an attic in an abandoned building for four days in May 2011.
Smith’s attorney at the time, Jeff Broderick, said Smith had been hanging around “his usual haunts” during the alleged abduction and had no way to hold the girl against her will. The attorney said the girl made up the story to avoid punishment for not coming home, and to get back at Smith for breaking up with her.
Smith reached a plea agreement with prosecutors and Superior Court Judge Pedro Jimenez sentenced him to five years for making terroristic threats, with a three-year minimum before he is eligible for parole. With credit for 769 days he has already spent in jail, he will be eligible next May.
Prosecutors dropped the kidnapping and sexual assault charges.
The victim, who did not want to testify because of her young age, is satisfied with the time Smith will serve in prison, said Casey DeBlasio, a spokeswoman for the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office.
“Fortunately the victim did not sustain significant bodily injury,” DeBlasio said.
The victim was kidnapped after she left her home following a fight with her mother, authorities said. She told police at the time that Smith drove by while she was walking on Chambers Street, then cut her off with his vehicle and grabbed her, choking her until she passed out.
For four days, he allegedly assaulted and sexually abused her, and burned her with a lit cigarette, while interrogating her about her relationships with other men.
According to her account to police, when Smith left the home where he was keeping her, she took the chance to escape. She climbed out a window, shimmied down the side of the house and ran home to tell her mother what happened. The mother and daughter went directly to the police from there, authorities said.
Smith also made a deal with prosecutors on charges related to a shooting in April 2011. He pleaded guilty to weapons possession and received a five-year sentence concurrent with the sentence for the threatening charge.
Smith turned himself in to police shortly after they announced that they were searching for him in connection with the alleged kidnapping, and has been in custody since then.
Contact Brendan McGrath at (609) 989-5731 or at bmcgrath@njtimes.com.
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