PHOENIX — A 23-year-old man was arrested in Chandler and stands accused of kidnapping a 14-year-old Kansas girl, authorities announced Tuesday.
Cristian Leonardo Caal Mucu was arrested at his workplace in Chandler on July 31, according to a video the Chandler Police Department posted on social media.
He is facing charges of kidnapping, sexual misconduct with a minor and sexual exploitation.
How were Chandler police able to find man accused of kidnapping Kansas teen?
Chandler police said the Finney County Sheriff’s Department in Kansas called them on July 31 after receiving information that the teen was in Arizona.
The teen had been missing since July 20 and deputies in Kansas had tracked her cell phone to an Extended Stay America hotel in Chandler, according to ABC15.
The Chandler Police Department’s Human Exploitation and Trafficking (HEAT) Unit was able to locate the girl within two hours at the hotel and found the suspect minutes later working nearby.
Officers from the department’s Criminal Apprehension and Street Crimes Units took the suspect, identified as Caal Mucu, into custody.
“Our unit’s goal was to rescue the juvenile and take care of her and get her where she needed to be,” Chandler PD Sgt. Aaron Lowe, who oversees the HEAT Unit, said in the social media video.
Chandler Police rescued a missing 14-year-old Kansas girl and arrested the 23-year-old man accused of bringing her to Arizona. Multi-agency cooperation helped us resolve this case swiftly and safely.#KeepChandlerSafe #HEATUnit #TeamWork pic.twitter.com/KNnRGfUAHH
— Chandler Police (@ChandlerPolice) August 19, 2025
Caal Mucu is a citizen of Guatemala who has been living in the United States illegally, according to ABC15.
During an interview with police, Caal Mucu admitted to bringing the teen to Arizona and said he had engaged in sexual conduct with her multiple times, according to the TV station.
“Anytime that we can identify and take a predator out of the community that’s looking to offend a child, that’s our mission, that’s our goal every day,” Lowe said. “And this one, we were able to not only rescue the female … but to take an offender into custody and get him off the streets is mission success as well.”
He was ordered to be held on a $50,000 cash-only bond, according to ABC15.
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