The man charged with abducting four-year-old Cleo Smith from a camping tent in Australia more than two weeks ago had an extensive collection of Bratz dolls, with a room full of the toys in his house.
Police charged Terence Darrell Kelly, 36, a local resident, with forcibly taking a child among other offences, a statement said.
Kelly appeared in court today to hear the charges, and interrupted the judge several times as the charges were read to him, including to shout 'I'm coming for you!' to journalists in the gallery. He did not apply for bail and was not required to enter a plea at the Carnarvon Magistrate's Court on Thursday.
Facebook profiles appear to show Kelly, dubbed as 'Bratz DeLuca', with a room full of Bratz dolls and pictures of himself driving with the dolls.
Kelly's social media posts appear to show a room full of dolls.
In one post, Kelly wrote "I love taking my dolls for drive arounds and doing their hair and taking selfies in public," and in another he referred to him as "mamma's little brat".
He also posted a video of himself with a filter showing hearts and the words "I love my dolls".
Police say they used a battering ram to smash into a locked house early on Wednesday and rescue Cleo.
The lights were on and she was alone playing with toys in a house less than a 10-minute drive from her own, police said.
Kelly was pictured with a pair of the dolls
When asked about whether Kelly might have used the toys to lure Cleo and whether the dolls pictured were found in the house where Cleo was found, police said they would not comment.
Police would not comment on whether Cleo was interviewed before Kelly was charged.
Media have reported Kelly raised suspicion among other residents when he was seen buying nappies and was known to have no children, but police have disclosed little information about what made the man a suspect.
Cleo Smith and her mother Ellie Smith leave a house where the girl spent her first night after being rescued in Carnarvon, Australia, November 4, 2021.
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“It wasn’t a random tip or a clairvoyant or any of the sort of things that you might hear,” police minister Paul Papalia said.
“It was just a hard police grind.”
Kelly was taken from police detention to a hospital late on Wednesday and again on Thursday, with what media reported were self-inflicted injuries.
Asked about reports Kelly was injured after banging his head against a cell wall, Western Australia Police Deputy Commissioner Col Blanch only replied that there were “no serious injuries”.
A police statement said Kelly’s “medical matter does not relate to any police involvement with him”.
Mr Wilde said Kelly had since returned to the police station and was “speaking to officers”.
Wednesday was the first full night Cleo spent at home with her mother, Ellie Smith, stepfather Jake Gliddon and her baby half-sister Isla Gliddon since the family’s ordeal began.