Man, 60, Pleads No Contest To Kidnapping Girl, 6, Off Metro Bus
LOS ANGELES (CBS) — A 60-year-old man pleaded no contest Friday to a charge that he kidnapped a 6-year-old homeless girl from a Metro bus last February.
James John Thomas, described as a transient, is facing five years in state prison when sentenced next Thursday by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Terry Bork.
Authorities said he took the girl from a Metro bus early Feb. 21 while she was with her family.
The girl's family is homeless and ride buses at night for shelter.
The girl's mother said she had fallen asleep on the bus and woke up at about 4 a.m. to find her daughter missing, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.
About two hours later, another MTA driver heard a radio dispatch about the missing child, and called police to report the girl and suspect were on his bus at a layover at Vermont Avenue and 120th Street in South Los Angeles.
Thomas was taken into custody.
The girl was placed in protective custody.
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