A Virginia man has been arrested for kidnapping and other serious charges after being accused of coercing a 12-year-old girl to run away with him, according to the Fresno County Sheriff's Office. 

Nathan Daniel Larson has a long and fraught history in public life. He ran for office in Virginia three times, and in an interview with The Washington Post in 2018, he openly advocated for white supremacy, the legalization of incest and the removal of laws against marital age restrictions and marital rape. 

He is a leader within the incel community and went to federal prison for 16 months after sending a letter in 2008 threatening to kill either then-President George W. Bush or incoming President Barack Obama

But the Fresno County Sheriff's Office said Larson is now facing a misdemeanor charge for harboring a minor in Denver after the 40-year-old was arrested there with a 12-year-old.

He is also facing a bevy of charges from Fresno County, California, ranging from kidnapping, child abduction, and soliciting child pornography from a minor to meeting a child with the intention of sex. 


Police in Fresno became concerned when they received a report of a missing 12-year-old on December 14. Detectives found that the girl had been communicating with Larson through social media for months and that he had convinced her to run away with him. 

Fresno Airport Police and Homeland Security Investigations had photos of Larson and the young child at the airport, where they got on a flight to Washington, D.C. with one layover in Denver. 

Police in Denver arrested Larson and eventually learned more about the situation. He had personally flown across the country to Fresno to convince the child to run away from home. He came to her house with a rideshare company around 2 a.m. asking her to leave. 

"Larson made her wear a long hair wig to alter her appearance. He also told her to act as though she was disabled and unable to speak to ensure she would not converse with anyone at the airport while making their way onto the airplane," the Fresno County Sheriff's Office said in their statement, adding that after Larson's arrest, police in Virginia raided his home. 

"During the investigation, detectives uncovered Nathan Larson has a deeply disturbing background. He is a white supremacist and a well-known advocate for pedophilia. This is a man who runs a website, which encourages the raping of children and sharing of naked photos and video of children being raped. During the past two months, Larson was able to convince the Fresno girl, through manipulation and grooming, to send him pornographic images of herself," the statement explained. 

Police in Fresno went on to say that due to the way Larson acted, they are concerned that he may have done this before to other children. 

At a press conference police shared even more disturbing parts of the story. 

"There was some activity including at the airport that was inappropriate between her and the suspect. That's going to help bolster the current charges that we have through the DA's office," a police spokesperson said. 

If convicted of the charges, Larson is facing potential multiple life sentences. 

He will have his first court hearing on December 24, where officials from Fresno will ask that he be sent back to California.