Trial begins in kindergartner’s 2013 abduction, rape

Opening statements are set to begin in the trial of a woman charged with abducting a kindergartner from her Philadelphia classroom and sexually assaulting her.

Twenty-one-year-old Christina Regusters is the lone person on trial, though her lawyer and the girl’s family believe others were involved.

Police say Regusters wore a Muslim garment and veil to pose as the 5-year-old’s mother and told a substitute teacher she was taking the child out to breakfast.

The girl was found partially clothed the next morning on a playground in January 2013.

  • WHYY thanks our sponsors — become a WHYY sponsor

Defense lawyer W. Fred Harrison Jr. hopes to implicate others in the crime as he questions witnesses during the two-week trial.

The girl’s family is suing the city over her significant injuries. She is now 7 and expected to testify next week.

WHYY is your source for fact-based, in-depth journalism and information. As a nonprofit organization, we rely on financial support from readers like you. Please give today.

Want a digest of WHYY’s programs, events & stories? Sign up for our weekly newsletter.

Together we can reach 100% of WHYY’s fiscal year goal