Kidnapped 13-year-old rescued when passersby saw her hold up a 'Help Me' sign in a parked car in California, police say

• A 13-year-old was saved after she held up a "Help Me" sign from her alleged kidnapper's vehicle.
• She was taken in Texas and brought to California, and was sexually assaulted, police said.

A 13-year-old girl who was kidnapped in Texas and brought to California by a man who sexually assaulted her was rescued after passersby saw her holding up a sign that said "Help Me" in a car, police and federal investigators said.

California's Long Beach Police Department said in a statement on Thursday that officers were able to rescue the girl and arrest a suspect after "a Good Samaritan" called the police on July 9.

"Upon arrival, officers contacted a 13-year-old female victim who was visibly emotional and distressed," the police said.

"Through their investigation, officers learned the Good Samaritans were in a parking lot when they saw the victim in a parked vehicle holding up a piece of paper with "Help Me" written on it. They acknowledged the note and immediately called 9-1-1."

Officers then found and detained an adult male suspect, police said.

Police identified him as 61-year-old Steven Robert Sabalan, a resident of Cleburne, Texas.

The girl's mother reported her missing in Texas on July 7, The Associated Press reported.

Long Beach Police said the investigation revealed the girl was approached by the Sabalan in his vehicle on July 6 near a bus stop in San Antonio, Texas.

"He pointed a gun at her and demanded her to get into the vehicle," police said.

He was driving a gray Nissan Sentra and is alleged to have told the girl that "If you don't get in the car with me, I am going to hurt you," according to the indictment and an affidavit cited by the US attorney's office in Los Angeles.

He was going to a laundromat when the girl was found, it said.

Officers found a black BB gun, a "Help Me" sign, and a pair of handcuffs when they searched the vehicle, the attorney's office said.

Detectives and the police's Sexual Assault Response Team "gathered sufficient information that the victim had been sexually assaulted while the suspect transported her across state lines," the police statement said.

The indictment and affidavit said he repeatedly sexually assaulted her, the US attorney's office in Los Angeles said.

He is charged with one count of kidnapping and one count of transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, according to the attorney's office. He was indicted by a federal grand jury on Thursday.

If he's convicted of both charges, he faces a maximum sentence of life in prison, it said.

Long Beach Chief of Police Wally Hebeish said he wanted to "commend our community members for their vigilance and willingness to get involved by calling 9-1-1."