A Kansas highway trooper rescued a 6-year-old girl missing for over a month after she was kidnapped and took two men she was with into custody, authorities said Saturday.
The Kansas Highway Patrol trooper pulled over an SUV for a traffic violation and discovered that the front-seat passenger had a warrant for his arrest from another state for kidnapping a 6-year-old girl just over a month earlier, the agency said.
The trooper spotted a girl around that age inside the vehicle with the passenger and driver, both men in their 60s, highway patrol said. It was also discovered that the driver had a criminal history which included homicide and numerous weapons violations.
The trooper, with help from a local sheriff’s deputy, secured both men before safely removing the girl from the vehicle, highway patrol said.
“This 6-year-old girl gave the trooper a false name and date of birth, after having been coached to do so, in an attempt to keep the adult out of jail,” the agency said. “Ultimately, our trooper calmed the girl down and got her to tell him her real name.”
The girl was identified as the kidnapping victim who had been with the suspect on the run for over a month, according to authorities.
The girl was unharmed, according to the agency, and the two men were taken into custody.
Kansas Highway Patrol told Fox News Digital that the traffic stop occurred in February. They were unable to share additional information at this time to protect the identity of the child and the integrity of the open case.
