Bail Set for Man Accused of Kidnapping Daughter

LOS ANGELES —  A federal magistrate set bail at $100,000 Wednesday for an Italian man accused of kidnapping his 4-year-old daughter from the Southland and taking her to Rome.

But U.S. Magistrate Judge Carla Woehrle said Carlo Albert Ventre must remained locked up until prosecutors have a chance to appeal her decision to a U.S. district judge, which probably will occur on Monday.

Ventre was arrested Sunday at Los Angeles International Airport on suspicion of international parental kidnapping, for taking his daughter Santina from the Southland to Italy in violation of a court order.

Santina’s mother, Toni Dykstra, who flew to Italy to retrieve her daughter, died July 28, 1998, under suspicious circumstances in Ventre’s Rome apartment.

Her death occurred shortly after an Italian court gave her custody of the child. Ventre has not been charged with Dykstra’s death.

Ventre came back to the United States voluntarily to fight for custody of Santina, who is living with her maternal grandparents in San Pedro.

A hearing on that case is set for today in Los Angeles Superior Court.

Ventre’s bond is being put up by his brother, a Las Vegas marble and granite merchant.

Under the terms of the bail, Ventre must live under house arrest in Las Vegas and return to Los Angeles only for court hearings. Members of the Dykstra family say they fear for their lives.

Gianfranco Ventre promised Woehrle he will watch over his brother to make sure he doesn’t flee the country or return to Los Angeles without permission.

Teri Martinez, Dykstra’s twin sister, said after the hearing that she is “still scared, even though he’s going to have electronic monitoring and [the] assurances from his brother.”