Woman arrested in campground kidnapping

MOORHEAD (AP) -- A Hawley woman on Friday was arrested in the kidnapping of an 18-month-old child who was left alone by her parents and reported missing from a campground for several hours.

Kristi Jo Kampa, 26, is being held in Sherburne County on charges of abducting the girl in June from a campground near the northwestern Minnesota town of Sabin, the Clay County Sheriff's Department said. She is scheduled to appear in Clay County District Court on Monday and also faces charges of false imprisonment, child neglect and child endangerment.

Meanwhile on Friday, the Hawley couple who left the toddler and two other children alone before the abduction pleaded guilty to child neglect and child endangerment, Clay County authorities said.

Authorities said Katrina Rivers, 26, and Charles Rivers, 34, put their children, ages 1 to 8, to bed in their tent at the Interstate Dragways campground around 11 p.m. June 3 before leaving the campground with a friend to go to a bar in Sabin.

The Rivers' -- who have lost custody of their children -- received no jail time, but they will have to pay a $500 fine, perform community service and undergo chemical dependency evaluations.

The Rivers said they made a mistake and hope to get their children back.

The child was reported missing around 1:30 a.m. June 4 and found less than a mile away about six hours later. Authorities said at the time that the girl was unharmed and had not been assaulted.

Authorities said no arrangements were made to have a responsible adult watch the children. The couple's attorney, Kevin Miller, said previously in court that the pair had asked adults to watch the tent while they were gone.