Charlotte Sena update: Craig Ross Jr court appearance postponed

Charlotte Sena vanished after going for a solo bike ride on Saturday evening in upstate New York. Two days later she was found hidden in a campervan and a 47-year-old suspect has been charged with her kidnap.

Martha McHardy reports:

The 47-year-old suspect who allegedly snatched nine-year-old Charlotte Sena from an upstate New York campsite and then taunted her parents with a ransom note has now been charged with her kidnap.

Craig Nelson Ross Jr, 47, was charged with first-degree kidnapping in the early hours of Tuesday morning and appeared for his arraignment in Milton Town Court, according to local outlet Times Union.

He was then booked into the Saratoga County jail at around 3.40am on Tuesday morning where he is being held without bail.

Rachel Sharp reports:

Charlotte Sena’s alleged abductor taunted the nine-year-old’s parents with a ransom note before law enforcement tracked the little girl down to a campervan round the back of his mother’s house, according to authorities.

The nine-year-old girl was found alive and safe on Monday – almost exactly 48 hours after she was snatched while riding her bike in Moreau Lake State Park in Saratoga County, upstate New York, on Saturday evening.

Craig Nelson Ross Jr, 47, has now been charged with first-degree kidnapping and is being held at Saratoga County jail.

Rachel Sharp reports:

New details have now emerged about the contents of the ransom note and who may have written it.

According to court documents obtained by CNN, the note allegedly demanded $50,000 from the nine-year-old’s family in exchange for her safe return.

Sources close to the investigation have now also told local paper Times Union that Mr Ross Jr may have forced the nine-year-old to write the note herself.

The Independent’s Martha McHardy reports:

New York State Police confirmed to The Independent on Wednesday that Mr Ross was arrested on 21 April 2017 following a physical domestic dispute.

According to NYSP, the unnamed victim accused Mr Ross, who then lived in Corinth, of applying pressure on their throat during an altercation.

“Ross Jr. was arrested at the scene and transported to SP Wilton for processing,” a spokesperson for NYSP said. “He was arraigned at the Moreau Town Court and released on his own recognizance.”

Craig N Ross Jr, 46, was taken into custody following some resistance and is currently being held at the Saratoga Correctional Facility, Gov 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.

Authorities have not determined whether the abduction was targeted or if the suspect previously knew the victim or her family, Gov Hochul said. Records show that an address listed for Mr Ross in Porter Corners is just a two-minute drive from the Senas’ residence in Greenfield.

Mr Ross lived at the residence until last year, according to records. News footage showed heavy police presence at that location as well as at the residence of Mr Ross’ mother in Ballston Spa.

A fundraiser started by the family of rescued nine-year-old Charlotte Sena has received more than $40,000 in donations as of Wednesday morning.

“Any donations will go directly to her parents to help with expenses while they spend time together as a family and transition back into some sense of normalcy,” the child’s aunt Jene Sena wrote in the description of the GoFundMe. “The funds raised will allow them to be together to heal and not worry about missed paychecks.”

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 Amber Alert system has been credited with the safe recovery of 1,029 children between its implementation in 1997 and 2020.

The system was named in honour of Amber Hagerman, a nine-year-old Texas who was murdered after being abducted in 1996.

Amber’s body was found four days after she was kidnapped while riding her bike in Arlington.

Twenty-seven years on from the tragedy, a suspect has yet to be arrested for the crime.

Every state in the US has Amber Alert plans in place to help find children who are missing and potentially in danger.

They are joined by Washington and Puerto Rico.

The state park where nine-year-old Charlotte Sena was kidnapped on Saturday remains closed as the investigation into her abduction continues.

The NYS Department of Environmental Conservations told CBS that the park will remain “closed indefinitely due to law enforcement activity.”