Kidnapper sentenced to 30 years

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) _ An Arizona man who demanded a $100,000 ransom for an elderly southeast Kansas man he kidnapped last year is sentenced to 30 years in federal prison. <br/><br/>Larry Raifsnider of Flagstaff,

Saturday, July 9th 2005, 10:57 am

By: News On 6

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) _ An Arizona man who demanded a $100,000 ransom for an elderly southeast Kansas man he kidnapped last year is sentenced to 30 years in federal prison.

Larry Raifsnider of Flagstaff, Arizona, pleaded guilty in federal court in Wichita to kidnapping and using a firearm to commit a violent crime. He was sentenced yesterday.

The 39-year-old was accused of kidnapping J-D Crocker last November from his home and demanding his wife, Betty, visit banks in two states to get his hefty ransom.

Raifsnider allegedly drove J-D around for hours while his wife collected the money. A bank tipped police to a withdraw of $50,000 Crocker tried to make in Oklahoma.

Bartlesville, Oklahoma, police later arrested Raifsnider -- who had been sought since 2003 for a similar crime in northeast Arkansas.