Group Looking For Christmas Tree Discovers Half-Naked Woman Who Had Been Kidnapped, Assaulted In Northern California

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REDDING, Calif. (AP) - Police in Northern California say people looking for a Christmas tree found a partially clothed woman who had been kidnapped and abandoned in a rural area.

Redding Police Capt. Eric Wallace says the group found the 25-year-old woman in a wooded area of Shasta County on Monday. He says the woman sought shelter in a burned out tree, drank water from a mud puddle and was exposed to extremely cold temperatures, rain and snow.

Fred Sanders and Johanna Knighten (l-r) (Credit: Redding PD/Shasta County Jail)

The woman told police she was kidnapped a day earlier by two acquaintances who believed she had stolen drugs.

Wallace says the woman also told investigators she was beaten and the pair forced her to undress and left her with only a pair of shorts.

Police arrested 44-year-old Fred Sanderson and are searching for Johanna Knighten.

Anyone with information about the case or Knighten's whereabouts is asked to call the Redding Police Department at (530) 225-4200.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story identified the wrong suspect being sought.