The girl was kidnapped shortly after her school bus had dropped her off near home. The defendant then called the girl’s father, Dexter Lai, demanding a ransom of $125,000 for her safe return, or Lai would never see his daughter again.

Larsen, 32, is being charged today with kidnapping in the first degree, extortion in the first degree, attempting to elude a pursuing police vehicle, and theft of rental or leased property.

“Every parent’s worst nightmare became reality last Thursday afternoon when we learned that a young girl was kidnapped from a Mercer Island street. As a community, we all felt the horror over this kidnapping,” Maleng said. “We all breathed a sigh of relief when we heard the news that she was safe and was returned to her parents.”

The defendant is also being charged with attempted kidnapping in the first degree for an attempted abduction on March 18 involving a 63-year-old woman who was walking her dog on Mercer Island. Prosecutors allege that he also pointed a gun at the woman, but after she screamed, he fled in a Ford Explorer.

All of the charges filed today are felonies.

After Larsen called the girl’s parents and demanded a large ransom, a drop off place was arranged and police watched as the defendant retrieved the bag of ransom money from a garbage dumpster. Rather than releasing the girl, Larsen fled.

The defendant is accused of leading police on a high-speed pursuit that reached 100 mph. He was eventually stopped and arrested near Monroe. In addition to recovering the girl, police also found a black pellet gun in his stolen Ford Explorer.

He is currently being held in the King County Jail on $1 million bail pending arraignment on April 13 in King County Superior Court. If convicted as charged, he could face a sentence range of approximately 9 to 12 years in prison. Prosecutors will consider asking for an exceptional sentence beyond the standard range if the defendant is convicted.

For more information, also see: Statement of King County Prosecutor Norm Maleng in State v. Kristopher Larsen