Tennessee man to appear in court on Chippewa Co. kidnapping

Chris Vetter, The Leader-Telegram, Eau Claire, Wis.
·2 min read

Oct. 3—CHIPPEWA FALLS — A 22-year-old Tennessee man will appear in Chippewa County Court on Tuesday for a bond hearing, after he was accused of kidnapping a 15-year-old girl in the Holcombe area.

Trevor D. Blackburn was arrested Sunday night by the Douglas County Sheriff's Department and the Superior Police Department. Blackburn is accused of kidnapping Kryssy A. King, who was discovered missing from her home Saturday morning. An Amber Alert was issued later that morning, which stated that King was "in serious danger." She was located Sunday evening, hours before Blackburn was arrested.

Chippewa County Sheriff Jim Kowalczyk said Blackburn was taken to the Chippewa County Jail Sunday night and was interviewed by his investigators. Kowalczyk said his office is recommending charges of kidnapping and burglary.

According to the preliminary reports, Blackburn and King met through social media and had never met in person. King flew from Nashville, Tenn., into the Minneapolis airport, and made his way to King's home in the town of Ruby.

Kowalczyk said that King was located east of Cornell. She was taken to an area hospital but seemed healthy, he said.

"There was never any information they had (a vehicle), so they had to be on foot," Kowalczyk said Monday morning. "So, we knew she had to be close to home."

Kowalczyk said Blackburn and King have been communicating for a while.

"This investigation started almost a year ago," Kowalczyk said. "She broke off contact (with him.)"

During the roughly 40 or so hours they were together, it appears Blackburn broke into a home to take food and water, and he accidentally left some of his property at the scene.

At least three K-9 units were used during the search, along with drones and more than 50 officers from multiple law enforcement agencies, he added.

"I want to thank all the agencies that participated with equipment and personnel, and anyone who had anything to do with it," Kowalczyk said. "It was a group effort, doing canvassing."

It is unclear if Blackburn has a prior criminal record.