News Article

Friday, 6 February 2009. 

A Tennessee brother and sister who were kidnapped from their home in 1989 have been found alive and well in San Jose, California, and their grandfather has been arrested. Christie and Bobby Baskin, who are both now in their twenties and known as Jennie and Jonathan Bunting, were found with their grandfather, Marvin Maple.

Authorities said Maple, 73, took the children 20 years ago because he thought they were being abused by his daughter and son-in-law.

San Jose police arrested Marvin Maple, who was living as John Bunting, after witnesses came forward on seeing a story about the case in a San Diego newspaper. A further investigation turned up witnesses who said Maple talked about being a wanted man.

Police said Maple took his grandchildren from their home on March 1, 1989 when Christie was 8 and Bobby was 7 years old. He and his wife Sandra raised the siblings in California. Sandra Maple died about two years ago.

Christie has a college degree in nursing and works in nursing administration. She is single and still lives with her grandfather. Bobby is married and has children, authorities said.

Christie and Bobby's parents now live in Vidalia, Georgia. Their father, Mark Baskin, is pastor of Normantown Baptist Church. Tennessee authorities are on their way to California to interview Christie and Bobby and try to arrange a reunion with their parents.

"First, we still love them. We never stopped loving them. We don't blame them for what happened and we want to have a relationship with them," Mark Baskin told reporters. "We don't want to appear to be pushy or bombastic," Baskin said. "We want to lay the fleece out and say this is what we want. The ball is in their court."

"It's like an out of body experience," Baskin said. "It's something we've been praying for and thinking about for twenty years, having our hopes raised and dashed. Suddenly, it looks like reality. It's just amazing."

Source: www.crime.about.com Visit website to view pictures of persons in this news article.