Kidnaped Toddler Found; Father Arrested : Crime: The man allegedly threatened to kill his daughter unless the mother paid $5,000 in ransom. He is held after telephone calls are traced.

Los Angeles police on Sunday recovered a toddler allegedly kidnaped in Northern California last week by her father, who had threatened to kill the child if the mother did not buy her back for $5,000, authorities said.

“The suspect attempted to lure the mother to meet him in Los Angeles and made threats to kill the child and to extort money from the mother,” said Sgt. Kenneth Lew of the Los Angeles Police Department’s Southwest station. “Phone calls were traced and made available to the LAPD, and officers acted swiftly and closed the case before any tragedy could occur.”

Emilia Michelle Talavera, 22 months, was kidnaped on Valentine’s Day by her father, Jose Amador Talavera, 25, a known gang member with a criminal record, authorities said.

Although he had been deported a week earlier after being classified a criminal alien, Talavera sneaked back into the country and visited the baby’s mother in the Sonoma County town of Rohnert Park under the guise of seeing Emilia one last time, said Rohnert Park Police Lt. Doug Smith.

Smith said that when the mother, Talavera’s 22-year-old ex-girlfriend Margarita Chivichon, left him alone with the toddler for a moment to get a baby bottle, Talavera fled with the child. Over the next week, Talavera allegedly placed several phone calls making the ransom demand. The calls were monitored and traced to Los Angeles, Smith said.

Talavera threatened to shoot anyone who interfered with him or tried to take the baby, Smith said.

“We kept tracing the calls until we could pinpoint where he was,” Smith said. Los Angeles police then arrested Talaveras and recovered the child at 12:40 p.m. Sunday from a house in Southwest Los Angeles, officials said.

Talavera was in custody Sunday, with bail set at $100,000, Smith said. He was booked on suspicion of parental child abduction.

Throughout the week, police and the Polly Klaas Foundation passed out flyers seeking the return of the girl, and faxed copies of it to news media outlets, police departments and businesses around the state. After she was recovered unharmed, Smith said: “We’re feeling great about it. This shows how good coordination between police agencies can really make a difference.”