Recluse accused in Charlotte Sena abduction had domestic violence arrest

BALLSTON SPA, N.Y. – The "recluse" New York man accused of kidnapping a 9-year-old off her bike and demanding ransom from her horrified parents was arrested in 2017 on domestic violence charges that involved allegedly squeezing the victim's neck.

The revelation comes shortly after a local newspaper alleged that Craig Ross Jr., 46, had recently been under investigation for accusations of child molestation until just last month and was wearing just his underpants when SWAT teams swarmed his camper Monday night.

State police told Fox News Digital that policy prevents them from confirming, denying or making any comment on investigations that did not lead to the prosecution of a crime.

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"We have no history of arresting Craig N. Ross Jr. for any sexual related crimes," New York State Police spokeswoman Stephanie O'Neil said Wednesday. 

Ross reportedly denied allegations that he molested a 12-year-old family friend more than a year ago and was never charged by the time state police dropped the investigation, according to the Albany Times-Union.

However, state police did arrest him years ago on domestic violence charges, after he allegedly "applied pressure on the throat of the victim" during a physical dispute, O'Neil told Fox News Digital.

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He was arrested on April 21, 2017, on a charge of criminal obstruction of breathing at a home in Corinth. State police processed him in Wilton and he was arraigned in Moreau Town Court. Then he was released on his own recognizance on the misdemeanor charge, police said.

The disposition of the case was unclear. Officials in Moreau said they had no record of the case, which would have carried a maximum penalty of a year in jail, with a potential enhancement due to the alleged involvement of domestic violence.

On Saturday, Ross allegedly snatched Charlotte Sena from a family camping trip at Moreau Lake State Park, according to authorities. He hid her in a cabinet inside a camper parked on his mother's property, about 13 miles south of his listed address.

A day after telling reporters he hoped his dad would die in prison, Ross' son told Fox News Digital he had seen no warning signs.

The elder Ross allegedly showed up at the Sena family house around 4:20 a.m. Sunday to drop off a ransom note in their mailbox.

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State police were watching. They recovered the note, alerted area law enforcement of the vehicle's description and allegedly found Ross' fingerprints. Before the end of the day, they had rescued Charlotte and taken Ross into custody.

State and federal tactical teams, some of them flown in by helicopter, raided the camper parked on his mom’s property in Ballston Spa, according to Gov. Kathy Hochul.

When they arrived, they allegedly found a resistant Ross inside wearing just his underpants, according to the Times-Union report.

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State police declined to address those details and said they would not comment on the specifics of an ongoing investigation.

Citing law enforcement sources, the paper reported that Ross was also accused of forcing the girl to write her own ransom note, demanding $50,000.

Ross, whose other prior encounters with law enforcement include a drunken driving case he pleaded guilty to in 1999, and a domestic dispute in 2016 that resulted in no charges, had also sued a woman in 2019 over a car crash. Both sides agreed to drop the case, records show. 

The kidnapping shocked the community, surrounding areas and people around the country just days after a stalking suspect named Charles Ross had been arrested nearby and then released without bail. After Craig Ross' arrest, rumors surfaced that the two men were brothers. 

Despite the common last name, police told Fox News Digital they had "no indication" of a familial relation between the two.

Charles Ross was accused of stalking a woman at a park in Saratoga Springs, arrested and released without bail days before Charlotte's abduction. He had a history of similar behavior, according to local reports.

As police shut down the park and launched a large-scale search and rescue effort over the weekend, they called in help from multiple state departments, including the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Services. 

That unit is typically tasked with capturing escaped prisoners, like the pair who fled the Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora in 2015 and parolees who re-offend, according to Paul Mauro, a retired NYPD inspector. 

And although the unit could have been involved for several reasons, he said, the announcement of its involvement prompted online speculation that authorities were looking for a serial predator, possibly Charles Ross, who reportedly had a history of similar behavior.

But police, who said they were conducting "due diligence" on all credible leads, downplayed that line of thinking.

"They have advanced training in search and rescue," O'Neil said.