Lang
1/29/22
An Iowa City man has pleaded not guilty to charges that he harbored at least one runaway minor.
26-year-old Nathaniel Whitfield entered the plea Thursday in Johnson County Court. He faces two counts of Harboring a Runaway Against the Wishes of a Parent.
Iowa City Police received a report last November of a girl who had absconded from Four Oaks in Cedar Rapids and was believed to be in Iowa City. Investigators say the girl’s social media posts indicated she was staying with Whitfield at his Linn Street apartment. Officers made contact with Whitfield at his residence that afternoon. He allegedly said the girl had been at his apartment the previous night and had just left a few minutes earlier to shop for clothes. When the officer asked to check Whitfield’s apartment, he allegedly said he would check it himself. Whitfield went into his apartment, then returned to the hallway and claimed the girl wasn’t there. The officer says he informed Whitfield that because he now knew she was a runaway, he could be charged with harboring her. Whitfield allegedly responded by telling the officer to get a warrant. Instead, the officer waited outside the apartment until the girl came outside on her own. She was then taken back to Cedar Rapids.
Iowa City Police were again sent to Whitfield’s apartment two days later for another report of a runaway living there. Investigators say they found the juvenile and Whitfield inside. The child had been reported missing several days earlier. Whitfield was then arrested. Arrest records do not indicate if it was the same juvenile as before.
Court records show Whitfield skipped his arraignment last Monday, and a warrant was issued for his arrest. The issue was eventually resolved, and Whitfield entered his plea on Thursday.