“She told me she is 19;” 42-year-old man, who indecently assaulted a 12-year-old girl he abducted from her home and then tried to start a relationship, was sentenced
Minnesota – In a harrowing case that left residents in Minnesota shaken, a 42-year-old man, identified as Q. Dirie, has been sentenced to 12 years in prison in connection with the crime he committed against a 12-year-old girl, whom he forcefully put in his vehicle, indecently assaulted, and later tried to start a relationship with. Dirie was convicted in May of first-degree criminal se-ual conduct and received his sentence last week. Prosecutors said the man showed “no remorse” for his actions, continuing to deny responsibility and instead insisting that the victim had lied about her age.
The incident unfolded last year, in June, when the young victim was in the backyard of her home. According to the criminal complaint, she had seen the suspect drive past her house often with his vehicle. On the day of the assault, Dirie stopped in the alley behind her home and asked if her mother was home. When the girl told him she was alone, he left—only to return ten minutes later. The girl told investigators that Dirie covered her mouth, picked her up, and forcefully put her into his vehicle, striking her in the head until she felt dizzy and disoriented. He drove a few blocks away, pulled over, and climbed into the backseat with her. There, he indecently assaulted her, leaving behind evidence she later provided to police.
After the attack, the girl managed to escape and run home, locking herself in the bathroom. Days later, she reported the assault to her school counselor, which prompted authorities to transport her to a hospital for a se-ual assault examination. Weeks later, a family member discovered suspicious calls on the girl’s phone from a man. Prosecutors said the victim’s older brother eventually answered one of the calls on July 29 and heard Dirie say, “Hey beautiful! I miss you! When can I see you again?” Pretending to be the victim, the brother lured Dirie to their home. When Dirie arrived, stepping onto the screened-in porch, he spotted the brother and the girl’s stepfather waiting inside and attempted to flee. The brother blocked the door as 911 was called, leading to Dirie’s arrest.
At first, Dirie claimed he didn’t know the victim. But when pressed, he changed his story, saying, “She told me she is 19 years old. I don’t know why.” Prosecutors, in their sentencing memorandum, said Dirie had no “insight” into the harm he caused and continued “claiming she is behind everything,” referring to the victim’s mother. They described him as uncooperative and unfit for se- offender treatment. Dirie’s family attempted to plead for leniency. His father described him as a “devoted father to his four sons,” claiming the family had been left in “deep distress” and that he “cannot bear the thought” of Dirie’s children growing up without him. But prosecutors criticized these statements, noting that none acknowledged the suffering of the victim or her family. “The statements show that either Defendant has not told them what he was convicted of, or that they are dismissive of his crime,” the prosecution wrote. They stressed that se-ual assault is “not something a person of good character does.”
The judge imposed a 12-year prison term, ensuring Dirie will spend more than a decade behind bars. For the victim and her family, the sentencing provides a measure of justice, though prosecutors emphasized that the harm done to the child cannot be undone. Dirie’s refusal to accept responsibility, coupled with his attempts to blame the victim’s family, cemented the court’s decision to hand down a severe sentence. What began as a summer day in a backyard ended in lifelong trauma for a child — and prison for the man who preyed on her.
