John Albert Gardner, III, Arrested in Disappearance of Chelsea King in CA

John Albert Gardner, III, age 30, a convicted sex offender, has been arrested due to an alleged link to the disappearance of Chelsea King in Poway, California. Gardener resides in Lake Elsinore, CA. During the week of the attack he was visiting his mother, whose home is located about a mile from the Rancho Bernardo Community park where Chelsea disappeared.

He was at a restaurant in Escondido at the time of his arrest, notes the LA Times. His home has been searched. Chelsea was not located in the home; she is still missing.

The San Jose Mercury News reports that John Gardner III, is "jailed for investigation of rape and murder following his weekend arrest."

The whereabouts of Chelsea are still unknown. Gardener is not providing information to the police, according to ABC news.

Chelsea disappeared when she went for a run after school at the Rancho Bernardo Community Park near Lake Hodges. She is age 17. There has been a tremendous search effort to locate her.

John Albert Gardner, III, was linked to the abduction of Chelsea King via physical evidence. He is also suspected of being linked to two other crimes in areas near where Chelsea disappeared.

On December 27, 2009 a woman was attacked in the same jogging area where Chelsea disappeared. That woman fought off the attacker and managed to escape. Also, Amber DuBois, age 14, went missing while on her walk to school in February, 2009.

Chelsea's car was found parked at the park the night she disappeared. Her cell phone was locked inside the car.

This crime serves as a grim reminder of the need to exercise caution while going about one's life. It is never safe to exercise alone in a secluded area. Unfortunately there are predators lurking everywhere, eager to use an opportunity to pounce upon someone who is vulnerable due to being in an isolated area.

Contact Police with Information

If you have any information about Chelsea King's whereabouts call the Sheriff's Department at 858-565-5200.

Too many young women are being abducted in America. The news is full of a never ending stream of stories about young women being kidnapped from a wide variety of places. It seems no place is truly safe anymore. Too many predators lurk about waiting for a chance to snatch an unsuspecting girl.

Too many girls are ending up dumped in dumpsters like they are trash. It is now the norm to search the local garbage dump when a young woman goes missing.

No one wants to be paranoid, but it is clear that a very high level of vigilance is required to ensure that some criminal does not steal your life away.

Let the police know if you see someone lurking around who does not seem to have a reason to be there. Surely, if the alleged suspect in this crime had an ongoing habit of trying to snatch women from the park someone must have seen him acting suspiciously there.

This crime was most likely a crime of sexual violence. Her car, a BMW, was found with her cell phone in it. The criminal didn't want the car. He probably had other, darker motives rather than simple theft of a vehicle.

Sources:

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/TheLaw/chelsea-king-disappearance-suspect-linked-cases/story?id=9975272&page=1

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/wire/ktla-poway-missing,0,7132499.story

http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_14491839