2 Abducted Sisters Are Found in Mexico, Unharmed; Man Arrested

A San Joaquin Valley man accused of abducting the two young daughters of his girlfriend was arrested Sunday in Mexico, where the two girls were found unharmed, authorities said.

Martin Ruiz, 32, of Coalinga was arrested by Mexican police working with several U.S. law enforcement agencies, Coalinga police Lt. Frank Steenport said.

Police traced Ruiz through telephone calls to his brother’s house in Ensenada, where they found him and Ashley and Cindy Campos, 8 and 10.

By Sunday evening the girls had been reunited with their mother at the border.

The incident triggered an “Amber alert,” but the warning system played no crucial role in finding the girls because they were not discovered missing for eight hours, Steenport said.

The incident began Saturday at about 5:30 a.m., when the girls’ mother, Josephina Campos, left for work, authorities said. Ruiz, who had been living with Campos for six years, then allegedly fled with her daughters.

Steenport said Ruiz and Campos had a history of domestic violence. Campos was kidnapped by Ruiz last year, but she did not press charges, Steenport said.

“Something happened at the home, basically, that made him return to Mexico,” Steenport said. “She wanted to end the relationship.”

The girls’ mother did not discover them missing until she returned from work in the early afternoon, Steenport said. The Amber system was activated by the Fresno County Sheriff’s Department most likely after Ruiz had crossed into Mexico.

The investigation involved several agencies, including the California Highway Patrol, the FBI and U.S. Customs.

Steenport said arrangements were being made to return Ruiz to California.

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The Associated Press contributed to this report.