Missing Calif. Girl Found Unharmed
Suspect in 3-year-old Francis Collins' alleged abduction under arrest, cops say.
March 2, 2009— -- A 3-year-old girl who was allegedly kidnapped from a family friend's home in a small northern California town early today has been found unharmed and the man suspected of abducting her is in custody, police said.
An Amber Alert was issued today for Francis Ann Collins. Yreka, Calif., police say the girl was abducted at about 4:30 this morning by 22-year-old Kody Lee Kaplon.
Roxie West of the Yreka police said the girl was found unharmed this evening in a remote area northwest of the city, which is near the Oregon border.
No other details of the incident were immediately available.
Kody was also arrested late today, West said, but she had no details about how the arrest occurred.
Police Sgt. Ray Boutin told ABCNews.com earlier today that Collins and her parents were staying overnight at a friend's house when the girl's parents heard Francis scream around 4:30 a.m.
While her father tore through the house looking for Francis, her mom raced outside to find her daughter sitting on Kaplon's lap as he drove away, Boutin said.
Police believe Kaplon may be the nephew of the friend Francis' family was staying with, Boutin said, adding that he didn't know why Kaplon would take the girl or where he may be headed.
"They knew his first name, photo lineup was done and they positively identified him from that," Boutin said.
At the time of the alleged kidnapping, Kaplon was wanted on an unrelated outstanding arrest warrant that was issued for him last week, according to court records.
A judge issued a bench warrant for Kaplon Feb. 25 for failure to attend a DUI class, according to the Siskiyou County clerk's office. The warrant is still outstanding.
