The man who kidnapped a 9-year-old girl from Moreau State Park and sexually assaulted her last fall was sentenced to 47 years to life in prison following three emotional impact statements, including one made by the young survivor that was read by a prosecutor.
Craig Ross Jr., 46, had pleaded guilty in February to kidnapping and predatory sexual assault of a child.
On Wednesday, Ross declined to address the Saratoga County courtroom, which Judge James Murphy III mentioned as he handed down the sentence, saying it “speaks volumes to the kind of person you are.”
Murphy imposed a sentence of 25 years to life for the first-degree kidnapping conviction and 22 years to life for the sexual assault. The judge ordered the sentences to run consecutively.
In the courtroom, Saratoga County Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Buckley read a statement from the survivor of the kidnapping and attack.
“Because of you, I can’t sleep at night," it said. "Why did you do what you did? Did something happen to make you do this? It bothers me that you took advantage of me being nice.”
Statements were made by the girl's mother and uncle.
"I don’t understand why people like you do the things you do," the mother said. "You took something from my daughter that cannot be replaced, and I will never forgive you for that.”
"You probably thought it was going to be easy to get away with," her uncle said. "Look at me. Does it feel easy now? You picked the wrong kid.”
The 9-year-old girl vanished while riding her bike in the park on Sept. 30. Her disappearance prompted an intense weekend-long search that involved hundreds of search-and-rescue personnel.
Days later, officials said Ross drove to the girl's family's home and left a ransom note in their mailbox. A fingerprint match from the note, police said, led them to Ross, who was taken into custody at his mother's house in Milton.
The girl was found alive in a cabinet at the house, according to state police.
"You did receive a life sentence, so did she," the girl's uncle said in court on Wednesday. "But the difference between the two of you is she’ll turn this into power and help people, while you’re rotting in a cage.”
NEW: Craig N. Ross Jr. was sentenced to 47 years to life in prison for kidnapping and sexually assaulting a nine-year-old girl last September in Saratoga County after three emotional victim impact statements from the survivor’s parents and uncle.@SpecNews1Albany pic.twitter.com/u7xlXHdjh6
— Spencer Conlin (@SpencerReports) April 17, 2024