Group Finds Kidnapped California Woman While Looking For Christmas Tree

A group of men looking for a Christmas tree in northern California on Monday found a 25-year-old woman, who was kidnapped Sunday by two people. Authorities from Redding Police Department confirmed the news Wednesday and said the woman, whose identity is being kept under wraps, was found partially clothed in a rural wooded area east of Eskimo Hill near Hat Creek in Shasta County. Police officials confirmed the woman was a resident of Redding, California, and added suffering from exposure when she was found.

Here is the press release by Redding Police Department.

On finding the woman, the men informed Shasta County Sheriff’s office, after which the police began their investigation into the matter. She was later transported and admitted to a hospital in Redding, according to a report in an ABC-affiliated television station, KRCR-TV.

The reports stated the woman later told the investigators about how she was forcibly kidnapped from the area of Mistletoe Lane and Victor Avenue in the city, Sunday afternoon. In addition to describing the chain of events, the woman also identified her kidnappers and told the officials their names. The suspects — Johanna Knighten, 33, and Fred Sanderson, 44 — were also from Redding. The victim explained how one of the suspects drove her in a white van, while the other physically assaulted her and held her against her will.

Additionally, the woman said both the suspects believed she had stolen narcotics from Sanderson. After kidnapping her, the victim added, the suspects took her to a remote location six miles away from the highway, forced her to undress, and left only a pair of shorts on her body.

Authorities said she finally found shelter in a dead tree and drank water from puddles in order to survive until she was found by the group of men the next day. According to police officials, before she found shelter in the dead tree, the woman was exposed to extremely cold temperatures, rain and snow.

Knighten was found driving a van in downtown Redding, officials said. She was arrested and booked into Shasta County Jail for kidnapping, attempted murder and conspiracy. Sanderson is still at large and police are on the lookout for him.

They have also released details about Sanderson’s appearance. He is described as being “6 feet 2 inches tall, 250 pounds with short or shaved blond hair and blue eyes.” The Redding Police Department has urged everyone with relevant information to come forward and call the department at 530-225-4200.

Shasta County court records suggested a man named Fred Marion Sanderson has a criminal history, which dates back to the 1990s, according to a report in a local newspaper, the Redding Searchlight. Though many of those records are traffic related, Sanderson did have a dismissed case of spousal abuse.