Lack Of COVID Test Stops Kidnapper's Bid To Cross Canadian Border With Girl In Trunk

A teenage man who was stopped at the Canadian border for lack of a COVID-19 test had kidnapped a 16-year-old from Connecticut, sexually assaulted her, and put her in the trunk of his car, according to police.

Christopher Jesus Constanzo, age 19, was driving this 2007 green Toyota Camry with Connecticut plates AB 76423 when he tried to take a 16-year-old into Canada, police say.
Photo Credit: *Vermont State Police*

Joe Lombardi

12/04/2021 3:30 p.m.

The kidnapping was reported in Connecticut when the suspect, 19-year-old Christopher Jesus Constanzo, abducted and sexually assaulted the female victim on Thursday, Dec. 2, according to Vermont State Police.

Constanzo is then reported to have held the victim in the trunk of his car while he drove from Connecticut toward the US border crossing in Highgate Springs, Vermont.

Early Thursday morning, the car, a 2007 green Toyota Camry with Connecticut registration AB 76423, stopped at a convenience store in the greater Burlington, Vermont area, at which time Constanzo removed the victim from the trunk and placed her in the back seat before continuing to the border, according to police.

A store surveillance image shows a man believed to be Constanzo at the counter at about 3:40 a.m. Thursday.

Constanzo continued with the victim to the border, where Canadian authorities denied entry and ordered the vehicle to return to the United States at about 7:30 a.m. Thursday, according to police.

US Customs and Border Protection agents then questioned the occupants of the vehicle, at which time the victim reported being held against her will and sexually assaulted, said police.

Constanzo was taken into custody and is expected to face federal charges, police said. The Vermont State Police is assisting Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) on the case.

Any witnesses to the incident at the convenience store, or anyone who may have information that could aid investigators, is asked to call Detective Sgt. Angela Baker at the Vermont State Police barracks in St. Albans at 802-524-5993.

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