Stayner Kidnapper Arrested

The man who kidnapped Steven Stayner and held him for years has been arrested again in Berkeley for allegedly trying to buy a child. Berkeley police say Kenneth Parnell was arrested last night. They say they received very credible information from someone in the community. Parnell kidnapped Steven Stayner in 1972 when the boy was seven-years-old. He held the boy until he was 14, telling him his parents couldn´t afford to keep him anymore. Their years together ended when Stayner went to police with a 5-year-old boy Parnell kidnapped two weeks earlier. Steven said he didn´t want the younger boy to suffer the same abuse.

Stayner´s story was made into a book and TV movie called “I Know My First Name is Steven.” He died in a motorcycle accident in 1989.

Stayner´s brother, Cary, was recently sentenced to death for killing three tourists in Yosemite National Park.