Local News in Brief : Santa Ana : Man Held in Abduction Won’t Fight Extradition
A man who allegedly abducted his granddaughter 6 years ago waived his extradition rights Tuesday and will be returned to Ohio within 10 days to face charges.
Leroy Freeman, 62, is wanted in Lucas County, Ohio, on a felony child-stealing warrant and for alleged unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.
Freeman, who waived his rights during a hearing in Orange County Municipal Court in Santa Ana, was arrested Oct. 21 at his Huntington Beach apartment, where police found his 13-year-old granddaughter, Charity, unharmed.
The girl was reported missing from her Ohio home in September, 1982, when she did not return from a court-ordered weekend visit with Freeman in Toledo, Ohio.
Freeman had helped care for the child since shortly after her birth. But Freeman’s daughter, Karen Creswell, was awarded permanent custody of the child in 1982.
Freeman will be transferred to Ohio within 10 days, Orange County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Lt. Richard Olson said.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
