Charlotte Sena update: Craig Ross Jr court appearance postponed

The family of nine-year-old Charlotte Sena, who was snatched while riding her bike in Moreau Lake State Park in Saratoga County, upstate New York, on Saturday evening, have said they are “thrilled” at her rescue.

“We are thrilled that she is home and we understand that the outcome is not what every family gets,” Charlotte’s aunt, Jené Sena, said in a statement to The Messenger.

“A huge thank you to the FBI, the New York State Police, all of the agencies that were mobilized, all of the families, friends, community, neighbors and hundreds of volunteers who supported us and worked tirelessly to bring Charlotte home.”

At a press conference on Monday evening, New York Governor Kathy Hochul revealed the address connected to the suspect’s vehicle was just two miles from Charlotte’s home in Greenfield.

Police are still attempting to determine if the Sena family was known to the suspect, the governor said, and will spend Tuesday interviewing Mr Ross to determine if he had the nine-year-old under surveillance.

The Independent’s Martha McHardy reports:

Gov Hochul said that Craig Ross, 46, has been arrested and charged with kidnapping in the first degree in connection with the abduction. Law enforcement rescued Charlotte from a cabinet inside Mr Ross’ campervan, which was parked behind his mother’s property on Barret Road, Town of Milton.

Mr Ross, who is being held without bond at the Saratoga County Correctional Facility, was linked to the kidnapping after he allegedly wrote and delivered a ransom note at the Sena’s residence. According to an arraignment memorandum, the note was written with “the intent to compel the payment of monies as ransom for [Charlotte.]”

In a statement released on Monday evening, New York govenor Kathy Hochul said: “We are overjoyed at the news that Charlotte Sena has been located safely this evening after an intense days-long search. Our hearts are with her family as they welcome her home.

“Thank you to the New York State Police, New York Park Police and all who worked so tirelessly to find Charlotte. It is because of their efforts that Charlotte will be able to return home safe to her family.”

She added: “This is a very good day. It’s been a long two days, but tonight our prayers have been answered. We are overcome with relief and gratitude for this gift to all of us. And it is the people standing here with me, they remind me why I’m so proud to be the governor of the state, incredible men and women who were relentless in their pursuit of finding this little girl.”

“[I]t’s a traumatic event for the family, and certainly Charlotte. And we’ll continue to keep this family in our prayers as they heal. But she’ll be going home. That’s the story. Charlotte will be going home.”

The man accused of snatching nine-year-old Charlotte Sena once lived just two minutes away by car from her current family home, according to records.

Craig N Ross Jr, 46, was charged on Tuesday with kidnapping in the first degree in connection with Charlotte’s abduction on 1 October. New York State Police raided a property owned by Mr Ross’s mother in the Town of Milton, Saratoga County, on Tuesday evening and found the little girl inside a campervan parked behind the home.

Mr Ross was taken into custody following some resistance and is currently being held at the Saratoga Correctional Facility, New York Governor Kathy Hochul said during a press conference following Charlotte’s rescue. The child, who was found “unharmed” and hiding inside a cabinet, has since been reunited with her family.

Andrea Blanco reports:

A suspect is now behind bars in a county jail in connection to the kidnapping of nine-year-old Charlotte Sena from a campsite in upstate New York.

Craig Nelson Ross Jr, 46, was arrested on Monday evening and charged with first-degree kidnapping in a chilling case that was described as “every parent’s worst nightmare”.

The terrifying ordeal unfolded began on Saturday evening when Charlotte was riding her bike in Moreau Lake State Park in Saratoga County, during a family camping trip.

When she failed to return – and her bike was found abandoned – her parents raised the alarm.

What followed next was 48 hours of growing fears for her safety as law enforcement feared she was in “imminent danger”.

The Independent’s Martha McHardy reports:

The suspect in the alleged abduction of Charlotte Sena may have forced the nine-year-old to write her own $50,000 ransom note, according to reports.

Craig Nelson Ross Jr, 47, was charged with first-degree kidnapping after Charlotte Sena was allegedly found hidden in a cabinet in a campervan at the back of his mother’s house on Monday evening almost 48 hours after she was snatched while riding her bike in Moreau Lake State Park in Saratoga County, upstate New York, on Saturday evening.

The suspect’s arrest came after he drove to the home of Charlotte’s parents and left a ransom note on Monday morning.

“He literally drove up to the family’s mailbox assuming they were not home,” New York Governor Kathy Hochul said, adding that Charlotte’s parents were still at the campground at Moreau Lake State Park at the time, and officers who were monitoring the family home had been sent to another call in the area.

The note allegedly demanded $50,000 from the nine-year-old’s family in ransom for her, court documents obtained by CNN revealed.

But Ross Jr may have forced the nine-year-old to write the note herself, local paper Times Union reported, citing sources close to the investigation.

The suspect in the alleged abduction of Charlotte Sena was arrested in his underwear, according to reports.

Craig Nelson Ross Jr, 47, was charged with first-degree kidnapping after Charlotte Sena was allegedly found hidden in a cabinet in a campervan at the back of his mother’s house on Monday evening almost 48 hours after she was snatched while riding her bike in Moreau Lake State Park in Saratoga County, upstate New York, on Saturday evening.

The suspect was arrested after he was identified by a fingerprint left on a ransom note he delivered to Charlotte’s parents’ home in the early hours of Monday morning.

Law enforcement agents then linked Ross Jr to the property owned by his mother, where they found him in the campervan, and arrested him.

The suspect was arrested by members of a specially trained police tactical unit while clothed in his underwear, Times Union reported, in a trailer on the Barrett Road property where his mother, Joan, lives in an adjacent mobile home.