"Then in his early 30s, Funston was working as a marketing associate at a wholesale foods company and living in North Highlands, a suburb of Sacramento. Detectives would later learn that he'd moved to the Sacramento area after being convicted of sexually assaulting a woman in Colorado. Prosecutors speculated the arrest spurred Funston to switch his victims to children, who he believed were less likely to identify him as their attacker."
"Funston lured children into his car using promises of candy or by holding out a Barbie doll. One girl, a 5-year-old Russian immigrant who spoke limited English, was assaulted and left 50 miles from home in rural El Dorado County. He was eventually caught when he lured two children into his car outside an apartment complex, prompting a neighbor to write down his license plate number and contact police."
David Allen Funston, now 64, was convicted of kidnapping and molesting six girls and one boy for assaults that began in summer 1995 and continued until his arrest in early 1996. Funston moved to Sacramento after a previous Colorado sexual assault conviction and targeted children by luring them with candy or a Barbie doll. One victim, a five-year-old Russian immigrant with limited English, was assaulted and abandoned 50 miles from home. Capture occurred after a neighbor recorded Funston's license plate when he lured two children into his car. He received three life sentences but became eligible for parole under California's Elderly Parole Program and was approved at a September 2025 hearing after a 2022 denial.
Read at SFGATE
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