For the Lost Blog

I have been closely following the abduction of Luca Principali from his Idaho home. He was taken while being looked after by a baby-sitter. She answered the door and there was a bearded man there who stated he was there with Luca’s mother. (His parents are seperated; his mother has not seen him in a year and a half.) Neighbors heard a scream and an Amber Alert was issued. This article shows the planning involved in the abduction.

A slashed car tire delayed Luca Principali’s father just long enough for his mother and an accomplice to nab him from his Boise home, investigators said last week to persuade a judge to issue a warrant for her arrest for kidnapping.

The half-hour it took Anthony Principali to change his tire bought the time the kidnappers needed to nab the boy and leave a 14-year-old baby sitter so scared she didn’t call police.

This is elaborate, of course, but not overly so for a parental kidnapper. What I found refreshing was his mother’s admission of her motive.

About two hours after Luca was abducted on Aug. 19, Ekaterina Principali called Anthony Principali and told him she took the boy to teach the father a lesson and that she would return the boy later.

Very few abductors admit at the start they are doing it to spite the other parent. I would actually rather see this than someone blathering on about how the kid’s better off with the abductor.

Incidentally, the divorce papers Anthony Principali filed that day asked for joint custody of Luca. It was only after the kidnapping that he asked this to be changed to sole custody.

I sincerely hope that Luca is found before he’s eligible for our site.