Man guilty of child abduction

A north Wales man who dragged an 11-year-old girl screaming from her home has been found guilty of kidnapping.

Charles Kenneth Nicholls grabbed the girl after breaking down the door of her house in Rhosnesni near Wrexham.

Obsessed

The 41-year-old from Mold was stopped by the girl's mother who heard her screams and prevented him from taking her away.

At a hearing on Thursday, a jury at Chester Crown Court convicted him of kidnapping and affray and he was remanded in custody to a psychiatric unit.

At the time of the incident last April, Nicholls, who is unemployed, was detained by two men, including former Manchester United and Wrexham goalkeeper Dave Gaskell, until police arrived.

The prosecution suggested that the defendant tried to kidnap the youngster because she looked similar to a barmaid he had become obsessed with.

Brave

The court was told that during the drama Nicholls was heard to shout: at the girl that he loved her.

The young kidnap victim and her sister, who cannot be named for legal reasons, were praised by Judge Dafydd Hughes.

He told the 11-year-old she was incredibly brave and told her sibling that she had done well to telephone the police alerting them to the situation and looking after her younger brother.

A second psychiatric report will be conducted on Nicholls and a hospital order under the Mental Health Act has been proposed by one doctor.