Kidnapping of 5-Year-Old Not Spur-of-the-Moment, Police Say

The Riverside man accused of kidnapping a 5-year-old girl this week had been planning the abduction for a while and was found with sexually explicit photographs of the girl when police arrested him and rescued the child in Utah, authorities said Wednesday.

Charles William Mix, 48, who already faces charges of child abduction and kidnapping for allegedly snatching the girl from her home early Monday morning, is expected to be charged today with sexual assault, according to prosecutors.

Mix had been living with the girl and her father in Riverside for two months and was described as a family friend. Using a stolen car, police said, Mix drove the girl to Richfield, Utah, where he was captured by police seven hours after the girl was reported missing.

“This was not a random crime. The suspect was making plans for this,” said Riverside Police Cmdr. David Dominguez, who refused to elaborate on that contention at a news conference Wednesday.

The girl’s mother, Sabrina Stansbury of Stanton, had gone to Utah after the arrest to pick up her daughter. They were flown back to Southern California on Wednesday and interviewed by a social worker and Riverside police.

“My daughter is healthy, happy and in good spirits, and we’re ready to move on with our lives,” Stansbury said in a statement released by police.

Mix is scheduled to be arraigned today in Riverside County Superior Court.

Mix, who was booked into Riverside County Jail on Tuesday night, was found with photographs of the girl “in various states of undress and engaged in sexually explicit poses,” according to an arrest warrant written by Riverside Police Officer Ronald A. Whitt.

Riverside police spokesman Felix Medina has said the girl was sexually assaulted.

Allison Nelson, the supervising deputy district attorney in charge of the case, said the girl will be returned to the custody of her father, Chris Clark, 36.

Nelson said she did not file a sexual assault charge against Mix on Wednesday because the police investigation, which included questioning of the 5-year-old, Stansbury and Mix, was still being conducted when Superior Court closed at 5 p.m.

Nelson said a decision on the additional charge could come after a briefing today with police.