Marital Feud Seen as Cause of Kidnapping

Police are searching for two siblings and the two men who allegedly kidnapped them as they were playing in front of their apartment complex Tuesday evening.

The children, a 6-year-old boy and his 5-year-old sister, were outside their apartment complex on the 6900 block of Fulton Avenue at about 5:20 p.m. when two men in a car pulled up, said Police Det. John Krulac of the North Hollywood Division.

One of the men might have been their father, who has had a dispute with their mother over custody of the children, said Krulac, who declined to release the names of the parents or the children.

“We don’t feel that the kids are in any danger, and hopefully this will come to a conclusion in the near future,” Krulac said.

The children’s parents have been separated for at least three years, Krulac said. He said police were trying to determine if the father was in the car or if friends or relatives took the children for him.

Witnesses told police that at least one of the men called out the names of the children, the detective said. Police were trying to determine whether the siblings were forced into the car or voluntarily climbed into it, he said.

Witnessed described the car as a black two-door model that resembled a Mustang.

Police believe that the father has left the country, but that the children are still in the United States, possibly with relatives, Krulac said.