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North Texas girl sex trafficked from a Dallas Mavericks game shares her story of survival:

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North Texas girl sex trafficked from a Dallas Mavericks game shares her story of survival:


NORTH TEXAS — Her local Dallas story made national headlines. Now, the 18-year-old North Richland Hills sex trafficking survivor is ready to discuss every terrifying detail.

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CBS News Texas


“It’s my first birthday home since, like, two years…,” said smiling Natalee Cramer.

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She is speaking out for the first time ever, explaining what happened to her in April 2022.

At just 15 years old, she disappeared from a Dallas Mavericks game at the American Airlines Center. She was found 10 days later with traffickers in Oklahoma.

“I can change people’s perspective and make them feel like they have a voice,” Cramer said.

Once afraid and too weak to tell her story, Cramer now wants her voice heard.

“I’m not afraid. I’m not afraid. There’s nothing to be afraid of. And it’s so strong, feels so strong saying that,” Cramer said. “I feel so strong saying that. I never would have thought it a year ago. I would have never been here. I would have never thought I could do it. I’m so proud of myself.”

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On April 8, 2022, the Mavericks played the Trailblazers at American Airlines Center.

Cramer and her dad sat in section 221 until the then 15-year-old left to go to the bathroom and never returned.

For the next 10 days, her story made headlines all over the country. AAC cameras captured the only clues. She was last seen with two men on surveillance video at the arena.

“I was planning on going to the game but then got anxious… I needed something,” said Cramer.

Cramer says she was struggling with anxiety and addiction to vaping and marijuana.

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“So, I just went and I found a male. I was like, ‘Hey, do you smoke?’ And he was like, ‘yeah.’ He asked me who I was with. And I was like, ‘I was with my dad. I don’t know where he’s at, but we can just chill.’”

Cramer says the encounter took a turn in the parking garage.

“I thought he was the only one… and he wasn’t. They had a bag of weed and rolling papers,” said Cramer. “Pretty much once they kind of showed me, I was just shoved in, not thrown in. But I didn’t I didn’t have a choice.”

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Cramer says it didn’t take long to know she was in danger. She said she “…wasn’t sober enough to do anything about it. I didn’t know.”

She said the details of that night and the next 10 days are slowly coming back to her. They are very difficult to hear.

Cramer said she was raped three times in the AAC parking garage and then she was driven somewhere else.

“I would say … 20 to 25 minutes away from the American Airlines Center … and they continued to have me smoke marijuana and they raped me again,” said Cramer. “And when I knew I was getting sex trafficked was when the guy, he had a gray hoodie on… I remember he asked me, he said, ‘Can you go take a shower and then put these clothes on so we can go down to the street?’ … I didn’t think of selling my body. None of that.”

Cramer’s parents, desperate for answers, hired a private investigator who, within 24 hours, made a terrifying find. He discovered adult ads online for their daughter. She was being sold in Oklahoma. 

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Cramer said she does not remember being driven to Oklahoma, but she remembers being there.

When asked why she didn’t find a phone to call for help, she said that part of the story is hard to understand.

“…that’s something that a lot of people will probably be very questionable about,” Cramer said. “There were times that there was a phone, and I could call … I didn’t, it didn’t run through my mind. I was, I was running. I was running for drugs. I was running for all these other reasons.”

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CBS News Texas

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Cramer says her family was not number one at that time.

“I was self-sabotaging,” said Cramer. “I was putting myself in positions that I shouldn’t have, but… I just didn’t call. I don’t know why I didn’t call.”

The private investigator alerted Oklahoma City police about the adult ads for Cramer. Ten days after Cramer disappeared from the AAC, an Oklahoma officer found Cramer wandering outside a complex where one of her traffickers would later be arrested.

“I was tired. I didn’t know. I didn’t know what to do,” Cramer said. “I was messed up to the point where I would see things that weren’t there … and so, I was just walking at those apartments, just like praying. I was just like, ‘God, please have someone, something, whether it’s a cop, an ambulance, something, a random person on the side of the road.’ I was like, ‘God, I can’t do this … please.’ And, ‘Somebody, please, please save me.’ And not five minutes [later], a cop pulled up next to me and he goes, ‘Are you Natalee Cramer?’ And I said, ‘Yes, I am.’”

Cramer became very emotional, saying her prayers were answered.

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“He felt it. God told him, ‘That’s her. Go get her.’ Like, God was there. He was there.”

It’s been two and half years since that night at the AAC, Cramer attributes her escape and recovery to faith, family, therapy, and Gunnar. Gunnar is her dog, who came along not long after she came home and began therapy.

“When I got Gunnar, I was in a manic … every morning he forced me to get out, I had to take him out. I had to feed him,” said Cramer. “He brought that motivation back … he’s a dog. He doesn’t know, but he saved my life completely.”

Cramer said she is lucky to be alive.

“I knew I was going to die. I knew,” said Cramer. “It’s scary to think that it happens every day. But I hope what people take from this is that it’s real. It’s real and it’s hard. And you may not think it will happen to you until it does.”

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She has a message for other victims and survivors.

“Don’t give up on yourself. Even if this happens to you, don’t give up on yourself. It will get better. It’s not something to be ashamed of anything. You just have to embrace it and realize it’s not your fault. It’s not!”

Cramer is still recovering, but she’s ready to help others who may be in the same situation she once was.

“I’m not giving up,” said Cramer. “I am going I’m going to continue to speak about it even if that means telling my story 100 times over and over and over and over. It’s not just my story being told. It’s other people’s who aren’t able to tell their story.”

Cramer says she is a 9.5 on a scale of one to 10. She is working on her GED and wants to start veterinarian school She says she’ll be a “10” when that happens.

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Cramer and her family started a non-profit foundation. Aisling for Life helps raise support and resources for sexual assault and sex trafficking victims. The Irish word “Aisling” means “dream.”

While several people were convicted in Oklahoma in connection to Cramer’s case, Dallas investigators made an arrest but later dropped the charges against the suspect.



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Dallas, TX

Trackdown: Dallas 7-Eleven robbery suspect wanted

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Trackdown: Dallas 7-Eleven robbery suspect wanted


Dallas police need a name for a dangerous robber who pulled a gun on a 7-Eleven clerk and walked out with the cash register drawer.

He was caught on camera. But it’s been six months, and he’s still at large.

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7-Eleven Robberies

What we know:

The robbery in question happened on Jan. 13 around 10:30 p.m. at the store at 302 North Marsalis Avenue.

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A Black male who is about 5 feet 8 inches tall and about 170 to 180 pounds walked in and waited until no other customers were inside.

“After it’s empty, he displays a handgun and points it at the cashier,” said Det. Eduardo Lopez Villa. “I don’t know what he said. He just demanded the cash from the cash register.”

Det. Villa said the suspect took the whole cash register drawer before fleeing eastbound on foot on 8th Street.

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What you can do:

The detective believes anyone who knows the suspect will be able to recognize him.

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“Yes, most definitely based on the video and the screenshot. If you know him, you’ll recognize him,” he said. 

Tipsters can call or text Det. Villa at 469-755-8445.

“I need his information so I can talk to him about this incident,” he said.

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FOX 4’s Trackdown

You can watch Shaun Rabb’s Trackdown series every Wednesday on FOX 4. Episodes are also posted weekly online, on YouTube and on FOX Local.

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FOX 4 viewers have now helped to make 220 arrests.

The Source: The information in this story comes from Dallas Police Det. Eduardo Lopez Villa.

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Dallas, TX

Dallas weighs $500 million‑plus repair plans as City Hall’s future comes up for debate

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Dallas weighs 0 million‑plus repair plans as City Hall’s future comes up for debate


Dallas officials are weighing two costly options for City Hall’s future: either relocate entirely or spend more than half a billion dollars on repairs. One proposal would cost about $532 million over six years, while a second plan would spread repairs over a decade at an estimated cost of $557 million. The City Council is expected to outline the next steps on the project tomorrow.



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Dallas weather: Flash flooding strands vehicles near DFW Airport after heavy rain

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Dallas weather: Flash flooding strands vehicles near DFW Airport after heavy rain


Slow-moving thunderstorms brought localized flash flooding to parts of North Texas on Tuesday evening, blocking highways near Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and dropping several inches of rain in portions of Tarrant and Parker counties.

Flash Flood Warnings

Local perspective:

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Flash flood warnings are in effect for Hopkins, Hunt, Rains and Van Zandt counties until 7:45 p.m.

Flooding was reported along Texas 183 near Valley View Lane south of DFW Airport, where stranded vehicles and water-covered roadways created hazardous travel conditions.

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A flash flood warning remained in effect near the airport, although rainfall rates had begun to diminish as the storm weakened.

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings

The National Weather Service also issued a severe thunderstorm warning for northern Hood County, citing the potential for gusty winds and small hail. Forecasters reported hail ranging from pea-sized to marble-sized in parts of Hood, Parker and Denton counties. 

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Forecasters attributed the weakening storms in Denton County to an outflow boundary, a meteorological feature that can disrupt thunderstorm development.

The warning area was reduced as the storm weakened near sunset.

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What they’re saying:

FOX 4’s Kylie Capps said the storms moved unusually slowly from east to west, allowing heavy rain to accumulate over the same areas for several hours. 

Rainfall estimates showed some locations in eastern Parker County and western Tarrant County received nearly 5 inches of rain during a six-hour period, while areas near DFW Airport recorded more than 2 inches.

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Elsewhere in North Texas, northern Rains County received nearly 5 inches of rain.

7-Day Forecast

What’s next:

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Forecasters expect a quieter overnight period, with only isolated showers lingering into the evening. Additional thunderstorms are possible Wednesday afternoon, though coverage and the threat of severe weather are expected to remain limited.

Temperatures are forecast to reach about 90 degrees Wednesday. 

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Rain chances are expected to continue through the remainder of the workweek and into the weekend as an upper-level low-pressure system sends multiple disturbances across North Texas.

The Source: Information in this article was provided by FOX 4’s Weather Team

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