2 AMISH GIRLS ABDUCTED IN NEW YORK, THEY ARE SAFE AND ARRESTS HAVE BEEN MADE

Police have arrested a man and woman in connection with the kidnapping of two Amish girls from their family's roadside vegetable stand.

Stephen Howells II, 39, and Nicole Vaisey, 25, both of the same address in Hermon, New York, were charged with two counts of first-degree kidnapping, St. Lawrence County District Attorney Mary Rain told ABC News tonight. No further details were provided. A news conference was set for 8 a.m. ET Saturday to discuss the case.

The girls showed up on the doorstep of Jeff and Pam Stinson barefoot, cold, wet and hungry Thursday night, the couple told ABC News earlier today.

The Stinsons opened their door to the two girls, Delila Miller, 6, and Fannie Miller, 12, who asked the couple to drive them back home. The Stinsons said they recognized the girls because they had bought produce from them before and were aware of news reports about their abduction.

According to police, the sisters were abducted Wednesday night in Oswegatchie, New York, a rural town located near the Canadian border, when they went out to sell vegetables to a car at the stand. They were then dropped off later near the Stinson's house, authorities said.

Authorities held a news conference today about the abduction but refused to give details about the incident other than to say that they are still investigating and the Miller girls appeared to be healthy.


Glad they're back OK, there are some wierd people in this world. I did like the way the comments point out that it's quite normal for Amish to be barefoot in summer....

I doubt they were barefoot when they were snatched; taking shoes away is sometimes use to keep captives passive as most people probably can't walk too far in bare feet, unless they have always been shoeless. Amish are not rich as such, but they are not poor and the girls would have been dressed as per Amish tradition. The newspapers do so love a bit of dreama, don't they? LL

I think it is quite normal for Amish kids to go barefoot in summer, LL...

https://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20110406063656AAsuvYa

It's not that long since it was common here, too.

bb1 wrote:I think it is quite normal for Amish kids to go barefoot in summer, LL...

https://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20110406063656AAsuvYa

It's not that long since it was common here, too.

I have visited with an Amish family and, yes, barefoot in the countryside, but in New York? Sorry, that doesn't jell with me. But at least they are safe and I hope unharmed. LL

I think we're at cross purposes here, LL, they weren't kidnapped in New York city, it was a small town in New York state.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oswegatchie,_New_York

bb1 wrote:I think we're at cross purposes here, LL, they weren't kidnapped in New York city, it was a small town in New York state.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oswegatchie,_New_York

Okay. Interesting that USA Today makes no mention of bare feet, however, just the clothes they were wearing. The Amber Alert was used, the elder girl gave the police crucial info, the suspects live about 13 miles away from where they went missing. LL

LL, it would not surprise me if that braindead reality TV show Breaking Amish had something to do with this - the alleged abductors may have had some half-assed idea about 'treating' the girls to a glimpse of life in the 21st century.

bb1 wrote:LL, it would not surprise me if that braindead reality TV show Breaking Amish had something to do with this - the alleged abductors may have had some half-assed idea about 'treating' the girls to a glimpse of life in the 21st century.

Never heard of that program, I HATE reality TV shows, they are anything but.    As the Amish do give their children the choice to become full Amish or leave when they are grown as they do not baptise them into the Amish beliefs, I hate to think what nonesense that program projects.  

"Perhaps the most famous aspect of Amish social life is "Rumspringa," which means "running around" in the Pennsylvania German dialect.  It is the time, beginning at about age 16, when youth socialize with their friends on weekends. Rumspringa ends with marriage. Apart from introducing young men and women to one another, this period is an important time when Amish youth need to decide if they will be baptized and join the church, which usually occurs between 18 and 21, or leave the Amish community."

 Might upset the family if the child decides not to become a full Amish, but they don't disown them as it is considered the right of all Amish to make up their own minds.  By the way, when we visited with therm, I was amused to find that I, as an Austrian speaker, found it very easy to understand them, whereas the German people we went with really struggled with the language.   LL

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breaking_Amish

No, I cannot stand 'reality' TV - it never is real, for starters.

My friends, this was taken from Sky News:

http://news.sky.com/story/1323108/couple-planned-to-keep-amish-girls-as-slaves

A couple accused of kidnapping and sexually abusing two Amish sisters in upstate New York planned to turn them into slaves, officials have said.

Stephen Howells, 39, and Nicole Vaisey, 25, have been arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree kidnapping.

Vaisey admitted that they lured the girls into the car with an offer to pat a dog, and then Howells shoved them in, according to St Lawrence County Sherriff's Sergeant Brooks Bigwarfe.

They had planned to keep the two girls, aged seven and 12, as slaves but released them about 24 hours later after hearing news reports of the kidnapping.



The couple planned to snatch other children, authorities believe
The girls were dropped off miles from their family's farm in Oswegatchie where they had been taken.

During their captivity, the sisters were handcuffed together at the ankles and handcuffed to the bedpost, according to Sgt Bigwarfe.

During a court hearing, District Attorney Mary Rain said the children were sexually abused by the "sexual predators".

Defence lawyer Bradford Riendeau said Vaisey was Howells' slave.

The August 14 kidnapping touched off a massive search in the Amish family's remote farming community.

Searchers scoured the community of about 4,000 people but were hampered by a lack of photos of the girls.

The Amish typically avoid modern technology, and the family had to work with an artist who spoke their language, a German dialect known as Pennsylvania Dutch, to produce a sketch of the older girl.

The parents, who have 14 children, did not express anger toward the suspects.

Their father, speaking at his farm, said the two girls were doing well following the ordeal.

I hope those two sickos never see the light of day again.

Hope so too.