Mother of New York girl kidnapped and rescued after 47 hours reflects on year since terrifying disappearance

During an early October camping trip with her family in upstate New York last year, Trisha Sena experienced every parent’s worst nightmare.

Sena’s children were biking around the lake at Moreau Lake State Park on Oct. 3, 2023 — a Saturday — when her 9-year-old daughter, Charlotte, disappeared.

“Long story short, the role is that you go in pairs. You are not allowed to go alone. They were cycling and they wanted to come back,” Sena told Fox News Digital. ‘And Charlotte said, ‘I’ll go again.’ She didn’t tell anyone. Everyone stopped and she kept pedaling. Unfortunately, there was someone waiting on the other side of the loop.”

A man, unknown to Charlotte, stopped her and asked her for help getting something into the back of his truck. She replied – as her parents instructed her – that he was an adult and he could do it himself.

CHILD WHO SURVIVED 47 HOURS OF KIDNAPPING FROM STATE PARK FOR AIRTIGHT CASE AGAINST CAPTOR

Charlotte survived a 47-hour kidnapping in October 2023. (National Center for Missing and Exploited Children)

“That’s something we talked to our kids about – that adults don’t ask kids for help. They ask other adults,” Sena said. “And he said, ‘My hands are too big. I can’t reach them in the back of my truck.’ So she decided to help him. And that’s when he pushed her into the back of his truck and drove past our campsite with Charlotte in the back… and she was gone for 47 hours.”

When Sena realized her daughter was missing, which didn’t last long, she immediately called the police, instinctively knowing something was terribly wrong.

KIDNAPPED GIRL RESCUED FROM MOTORHOME CLOSET; KIDNAPPING EXPECTED LOCKED UP AFTER LEAVING A RELEASE NOTE

Police secure the entrance to Moreau Lake State Park as the search continues for a missing 9-year-old girl who was camping in the park with her family this weekend, Oct. 2, 2023, in Gansevoort, New York. (AP Photo/Michael Hill, File)

“In situations like this, every minute, every second counts when it comes to your reaction time,” she said.

The following Monday, around 4:20 a.m., state police were monitoring Sena’s home when they witnessed a suspicious man drive up to the house and drop something in the family’s mailbox. It was a ransom note.

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Police immediately collected the note, on which they examined fingerprints, and noted the vehicle details. A fingerprint on the note matched one in their system from a 1999 DWI arrest in Saratoga County.

Authorities were soon able to identify and arrest the suspect. Later that same Monday, tactical teams stormed his mother’s double-wide trailer in Milton, just outside Saratoga Springs, where they located the suspect and Charlotte.

FORMER CAST MEMBER OF ‘HAMILTON’ MISSING, CAR ABANDONED NEAR NATIONAL PARK

New York State Police collect evidence at the home of the kidnapping suspect in Ballston Spa, New York on October 3, 2023. (Hans Pennink for Fox News Digital)

“Immediately the little girl was found in a covered cupboard. She was rescued,” Governor Kathy Hochul said at a press conference at the time.

The year since Charlotte’s kidnapping has been the “hardest year” of Sena’s life, but her family is working hard to move forward and be positive, she said.

New York police hunted for CHARLOTTE’s suspect vehicle for hours before the fingerprints came back

“I could sit here and say it’s been a terrible year, and the hardest year of my life, and it has been. But as a family we have made a lot of progress. Charlotte has made a lot of progress,” she said.

Governor Kathy Hochul delivers her comments after Charlotte Sena of Greenfield, New York, was reported missing in Latham, New York on October 2, 2023. (Hans Pennink for Fox News Digital)

Sena and her sister, Jené Sena – Charlotte’s aunt – turned a terrifying moment that rocked their entire family into a source of hope and change for families experiencing similar situations involving missing and abused children. They now co-host a podcast called “Sisterhood of the Survivors,” where they “share their personal stories as they heal from this traumatic event in its aftermath, as well as the stories of others,” according to a description of the show. .

The Sena sisters have also advocated for common-sense updates to state and national Amber Alert laws, as well as a bill in New York State called the Child Survivor Privacy Act, which aims to pave the way to justice for survivors of child abuse shorter and easier.

The bill requires the FBI to “use a multidisciplinary team to investigate child abuse and related crimes” and “reauthorizes grants for child advocacy centers (CACs)” that “use a multidisciplinary response to investigate, treat, and prosecute child abuse to coordinate”. cases of abuse,” according to a summary of the legislation.

It also requires the “FBI to use a multidisciplinary team in any investigation involving child sexual exploitation or abuse, the production of child sexual abuse material, or child trafficking” and mandates the agency “in these investigations to include a trained forensic interviewer for to engage children.”

Jené Sena speaks to reporters in Saratoga County Courthouse in Ballston Spa, New York, February 1, 2024. (Hans Pennink for Fox News Digital)

Trisha Sena noted that her daughter had to retell her story on three separate occasions, forcing the 9-year-old to relive her trauma “even though there were a million pieces of evidence” so prosecutors could get the explanations they needed. to bring the suspect to justice in her case.

“Basically you have to prove that someone committed a crime against you, even if there is DNA evidence. Maybe there was someone who saw you being taken, whatever the case is,” Trisha Sena said. “…I feel like we as a whole need to do a better job of protecting our children.”

On October 2, 2023, an Amber Alert will be displayed along roads in New York State. (Chris Eberhart/Fox News Digital)

Retelling stories of abuse can discourage some children from talking about their experiences, she noted.

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In addition, Trisha and Jené argue for harsher sentences for child abusers.

“We actually had a meeting with some key people in the governor’s office and we said, ‘Can we do something about that?’ I mean, these people who commit crimes against children get out in six months, or they get off with time served… And it doesn’t protect our children by putting them back on the streets,” Jené said.

New York State Police check vehicles for Charlotte Sena of Greenfield, Oct. 2, 2023, in Gansevoort, New York. (Hans Pennink for Fox News Digital)

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Trisha noted that her daughter will have to live with what happened when she was nine “for the rest of her life,” while child molesters like the man in her case will have the opportunity to be released from prison after serving their sentences.

“It’s just wrong,” Trisha said.

Craig Nelson Ross was 47 years old when he was arrested. Although he could have served 111 years for the crimes he was accused of, he was sentenced to 47 years as part of a plea deal.