Canyon sheriff: California man charged with kidnapping 11-year-old Nampa girl
A California man was arrested in Canyon County on Monday and charged with kidnapping an 11-year-old girl, according to the Canyon County Sheriff’s Office.
After an 11-year-old was reported missing and could not be found by authorities, the Sheriff’s Office searched the girl’s cellphone records and found that she had been in communication with a California phone number, according to a news release.
Police later located the girl at a local hotel, where they said she was with Brian Sangjoon Lee, 20, of Granada Hills, California. Lee was taken in for questioning, and detectives determined that he had met the girl in an online gaming program, according to the release.
“Eventually, an agreement was made that he would travel to Idaho from the Los Angeles area to pick her up and return to his home with her,” according to the release.
Lee has been charged with first-degree kidnapping and is being held on a $1 million bond at the Canyon County jail. The investigation is ongoing, and police said additional charges are possible.
A conviction on charges of first-degree kidnapping is punishable by life imprisonment or the death penalty, according to Idaho statute.
“Words cannot express my gratitude for (my deputies’) work in stopping what could have ended in a very grave situation for this poor girl,” Canyon County Sheriff Kieran Donahue said in the release. “This case also serves as a stark reminder to all parents about the dangers online predators pose to children in our community and across the nation.”
This story was originally published August 25, 2021 at 1:32 PM.
