Kidnapping Victim Is Returned Home Safe

A 13-year-old boy has been returned to his Inglewood home after a kidnapping that might have been a case of mistaken identity, police said.

After receiving a tip, Inglewood police found Kalan Dapson unharmed at the Greyhound bus station in downtown Los Angeles about 8 p.m. Wednesday, authorities said. His kidnappers apparently put him on a bus in San Diego.

Police said the suspects were still at large.

The search for the teenager began Tuesday night after two male suspects allegedly abducted Kalan from the driveway of his family’s home in the 3700 block of West 112th Street about 8:45 p.m.

After escorting Kalan east on 112th, the suspects allegedly placed him in a car, put a mask over his head and drove him to San Diego, Inglewood Police Lt. Mike McBride said.

Though police are still investigating the suspects’ motive, a leading theory is that they targeted the wrong person, McBride said.

“This may have been a case of mistaken identity, that these two kidnappers just picked up the wrong guy,” he said. “At some point they probably realized it and made arrangements to send [Kalan] back home.”

Relatives described Kalan as a good-natured, fun-loving teenager who had moved with his family to the United States eight months ago from Belize to pursue a better education.

His disappearance prompted a 23-hour search that included assistance from the El Monte Police Department bloodhound unit, other area police agencies, the FBI and the public.