Oakland man opened his door, where police informed him they’d tracked missing girl to his home

OAKLAND — A local resident has been charged with sexually abusing a 14-year-old girl he reportedly met on a social media app that targets teens, and police say they tracked the girl to his bedroom.

The girl was reported missing from another part of Northern California days earlier, authorities said. On July 29, police were able to track her location to the 300 block of Euclid Avenue in Oakland, where they knocked on the apartment of 23-year-old Brooke Haile, according to court records.

Haile allegedly answered the door, openly admitted to knowing the girl, and told the officer that she was inside, a police report says. The report refers to the girl as “Victim 1” or “V1,” not by her name.

“When i informed Haile that V1 was a missing Juvenile he appeared to panic and ran to the bedroom and confronted V1,” Oakland police Officer Ben Smith wrote in a probable cause declaration filed in court. “When I entered the bedroom I observed V1 laying on Haile’s bed underneath a blanket. I asked V1 if she had a any cloths on which she replied she did not.”

Now, Haile has been charged with five felonies related to alleged sexual abuse. Police say the girl told them she met Haile on a social media app geared toward teens. That turned out to be Purp, an app that allows kids as young as 13 to join with their parents’ permission, according to court records and the company’s website.

Judge Thomas Reardon released Haile from jail on Aug. 1, the same day the charges were filed. The release order says Haile can’t use social media or dating apps, and can’t hang around children without another adult present, court records show. The Alameda County District Attorney’s office objected to his release.

Haile is next due in court on Aug. 28, records show. He has not yet entered a plea.