Jennifer Montana (l) and Joe Montana are seen in Berlin in 1991. The Montanas thwarted the kidnapping of their grandchild Saturday.
Axel Kull/Associated Press
hide caption
toggle caption
Axel Kull/Associated Press
Jennifer Montana (l) and Joe Montana are seen in Berlin in 1991. The Montanas thwarted the kidnapping of their grandchild Saturday.
Axel Kull/Associated Press
NFL star Joe Montana and his wife Jennifer stopped an intruder from kidnapping their grandchild on Saturday afternoon. The incident culminated with Jennifer pulling the child out of the intruder’s arms.
The nine-month-old child was slumbering peacefully in the living room when a woman entered the Malibu house, took the child out of the playpen and held it in her arms, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said in a statement.
The woman, later identified as 39-year-old Sodsai Dalzell, took the child upstairs, where she was confronted by the Montanas.
They asked her to give the child back. She refused.
“A tussle ensued and Mrs. Montana was able to safely pry the child out of the suspect’s arms,” the sheriff’s office said.
The woman fled. Joe Montana was able to flag down sheriff’s deputies patrolling the area and tell them what happened.
After a search, deputies found Dalzell in a nearby house and arrested her. No one was injured. It wasn’t immediately clear if Dalzell has a lawyer.
“Thank you to everyone who has reached out,” Joe Montana said on Twitter. “Scary situation, but thankful that everybody is doing well. We appreciate respect for our privacy at this time.”
Dalzell has been charged with kidnapping and burglary. She’s being held at the Century Regional Detention Facility in Lynwood on $150,000 bail, with a court date scheduled for Tuesday morning.
Montana is a philanthropist and former Sports Illustrated swimsuit model. Her 64-year-old husband played with the NFL for 16 seasons, most of those for the San Francisco 49ers, and was admitted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2000.
