Missing girl's rescue in upstate New York came as pivotal hours ticked by

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https://apnews.com/article/missing-child-camping-rescue-ransom-note-fingerprints-d40214566d16512582eaa620dcbd56f0

Missing girl’s rescue in upstate New York came as pivotal hours ticked by

BY MAYSOON KHAN AND CAROLYN THOMPSON
Updated 9:07 PM EDT, October 3, 2023

MOREAU, N.Y. (AP) — An agonizing 34 hours had passed since 9-year-old Charlotte Sena disappeared from an upstate New York campground when police got the break they needed to bring the girl home safely.

At 4:20 a.m. Monday, a vehicle pulled up to the family’s home a short drive away from the campground, and the driver exited in the darkness to place a ransom note in the mailbox. Law enforcement had been guarding the little girl’s home and watched the scene unfold.

The officers rushed to the mailbox, investigators quickly isolated fingerprints, and within hours were running them through a New York state database. The first try turned up nothing. Then came a second, connecting the print to the suspect and his white camper parked next to a doublewide trailer two miles away.

Some 20 officers from a state police special operations unit and FBI SWAT team descended on the camper, arresting suspect, 46-year-old Craig Ross Jr., and finding the girl in a cabinet.

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[rurallib]

1. That is so good to hear - thanks for posting

[SergeStorms]

2. Rotten bastard.

I hope they hang him up by his testicles. 😡
The nightmares that poor child and her family have/will endure will undoubtedly scar them for life.

[Earthrise]

3. Officers were waiting at the girl's home and didn't nab the guy right then and there?

They grabbed the letter, took fingerprints, ran them twice - got lucky? - and then tracked him down.

I kind of understand that they don't want to capture him, and then he won't say where the girl was left, but really, they let him drive off without even tailing him? License plate?

[Quakerfriend]

4. My thoughts too

If they had not found fingerprints then what??

Why not atleast put a ‘tail’ on him??

[twodogsbarking]

5. A lot of people put in time and there were many volunteers. Thank you to all.

He was found and she was returned. Success.