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A 31-year-old Payson man is behind bars after police say he had an inappropriate sexual relationship with a 12-year-old girl, with whom he had been communicating on social media.
Jeffrey Nicolas Nyman was charged Wednesday in 4th District Court with two counts of rape of a child, two counts of sodomy on a child , two counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child and one count of child kidnapping, all first-degree felonies punishable by up to life in prison. A charge of second-degree felony enticing or luring a minor by internet or text was also filed.
Nyman allegedly picked up the victim from her junior high school in Taylorsville last Monday and took her to a Utah County hotel room, where the two had sex, according to charging documents.
The police were called that day after the girl's parents could not find her and she hadn't been at school. The girl's classmate told police that she said she was skipping school that day with her 20-year-old boyfriend "and they were going to a hotel together for the day," charging documents state.
Nyman had been communicated with the young girl through social media applications, police say, including the dating app Plenty of Fish.
Police found messages that were "highly sexual" between Nyman and the girl that were sent the evening before, according to charging documents.
The girl later told police that she let him have sex with her "because she loves him," charging documents state. She also told police that Nyman knew "literally everything" about her, including her age.
When Nyman was interviewed by police last week, he allegedly told them that he wasn't aware of how young the girl was, and denied having intercourse with her.
"Nyman denied knowing that [the girl] was 12 years old and said he 'feels dirty' now knowing that," an Orem police officer wrote. "Nyman expressed significant regret."
Nyman is expected to make his first court appearance on Thursday. He is currently being held at the Utah County jail in lieu of $30,000 cash-only bail.