Sheriff: Pair may have plotted to kidnap more kids

CANTON, N.Y. -- A couple accused of kidnapping two young Amish sisters were prowling for easy targets and may have also planned to abduct other children, a sheriff said Saturday.

Stephen Howells Jr. and Nicole Vaisey, both of Hermon, were arrested Friday on charges they snatched the 7-year-old and 12-year-old girls from a roadside farm stand in front of their home near the Canadian border.

St. Lawrence County Sheriff Kevin Wells said at a news conference Saturday that more charges may be filed and that investigators are looking into whether the pair had plotted or carried out other abductions.

"We felt that there was the definite potential that there was going to be other victims," Wells said.

The sisters were abducted Wednesday from their family's farm stand in Oswegatchie and were set free by their captors Thursday.

Howells and Vaisey were arraigned late Friday on charges of first-degree kidnapping with the intent to physically harm or sexually abuse the victims.

The sheriff said Howells, 39, and Vaisey, 25, "were targeting opportunities" and did not necessarily grab the girls because they were Amish.

"There was a lot of thought process that went into this," Wells said. "They were looking for opportunities to victimize."

The suspects are being held without bail and have a preliminary court appearance scheduled for Thursday.

Bradford Riendeau, a lawyer for Vaisey, said, "We're going to be reviewing the available evidence." He expected to speak with her in jail later Saturday, he said.

There was no answer Saturday at the offices of the St. Lawrence County Conflict Defender's Office, which is representing Howells.

Wells said the girls were able to provide details to investigators about their time in captivity.

The Associated Press generally does not identify people who may be victims of sexual abuse.

The kidnappings Wednesday touched off a massive search in the family's remote farming community.

The girls turned up safe about 24 hours later at the door of a house 15 miles from where they were taken.

Searchers had scoured the farming community of about 4,000 people, a hunt hampered by a lack of photos of the girls for authorities to circulate.

The Amish typically avoid modern technology, and the family had to work with an artist who spoke their language, a German dialect known as Pennsylvania Dutch, to produce a sketch of the older girl.