A woman has been accused of kidnapping billionaire Slack heiress Mint Butterfield along with a tattooed 26-year-old suspect.
On Saturday night, 16-year-old Mint, who uses they pronouns, was found by police in the back of a white van after going missing for more than a week in San Francisco.
Sarah Atkins was charged with kidnapping and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Christopher ‘Kio’ Dizefalo was charged with several counts, including child kidnapping, according to a criminal complaint.
Mint is the only child of two Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, Slack co-founder Stewart Butterfield and Flickr founder Caterina Fake.
After Mint was found, Butterfield and Fake praised police for locating their daughter and called Dizefalo a “predator.”
Mint Butterfield, the 16-year-old daughter of billionaire technology CEO Stewart Butterfield, was found Saturday night.
Christopher ‘Kio’ Dizefalo, seen here, was with Mint when they were located. He was charged with several charges, including child abduction. Sarah Atkins was charged with kidnapping and contributing to the delinquency of a minor
On Wednesday, Dizefalo appeared in Marin County Superior Court, when a judge ordered him to stay away from Mint. He is expected to return to court on Friday.
Atkins did not appear in court and was not in custody as of Wednesday. A warrant has been issued for her arrest, Deputy District Attorney Daniel Madow told the court. Atkins, said to be in her mid-20s, was not present when she encountered Mint, said Marin sheriff’s Sgt. Adam Schermerhorn said The San Francisco Standard.
Mint disappeared from her mother’s home in wealthy Bolinas on April 21, before Fake reported her missing the next day.
Detectives said they learned Mint was associating with Dizefalo, who was known for driving a white van. After tracking the vehicle, officers found Mint inside.
Authorities said Dizefalo and Mint were in a “quasi-relationship,” according to the New York Post.
In a statement, the Marin County Sheriff’s Office said Mint was found unharmed and had run away from his home voluntarily.
After detectives interviewed Dizefalo, he was arrested and booked into the Marin County Jail, with bail set at $50,000.
Police said earlier in the week that Mint was “at risk” due to a previous suicide threat. Mint is also reported to have struggled with addiction issues in the past.
They said Mint had left her mother’s house with a suitcase and left a note indicating that they had left the residence. Police believed they were in the Tenderloin area.
Mint’s father, Stewart Butterfield, is the co-founder of Slack. He is seen at the WIRED25 Summit in 2019.
His mother, Caterina Fake, is the founder of Flickr. She is pictured at Fortune’s Most Powerful Women conference in Dana Point, California, in October 2018.
The Tenderloin is the center of the fentanyl crisis in San Francisco and is known for its squalid conditions, homelessness, crime, drug trafficking, and prostitution.
In an email to the press, Butterfield and Fake denounced Dizefalo, a valet.
The parents wrote, “We want to especially thank the experienced law enforcement officers who understand the very real threat of predators who use the lure of drugs to groom teens.”
Mint’s father is currently worth $1.6 billion. Slack was acquired by Salesforce in 2021 for $28 billion, and Butterfield left the company in 2022. Her mother started the Flickr imaging service with her then-partner Butterfield. They sold the image hosting website to Yahoo in 2005.
Since then, Fake has served on the board of directors of several startups and is known as an angel investor in the technology world.
Fake and Butterfield married in 2001 and remained together until 2007, when Mint was born.
Mint’s parents married in 2001 and remained together until 2007, when they were born. Butterfield is seen with her now wife Jen Rubio (left) and Fake is seen with her now husband Jyri Engestrom (right)
In 2021, Butterfield purchased a $31.7 million mansion in Aspen, Colorado. The residence is spread over a five-acre estate overlooking the Castle Creek valley.
Stewart Butterfield’s $19 million San Francisco home located in luxurious Presidio Heights
Butterfield has since married Jen Rubio, co-founder of Away, an American luggage and travel accessories brand, and the couple has two young children together.
Fake is now in a relationship with Jaiku co-founder Jyri Engestrom, and the couple share three children.
In 2021, Butterfield purchased a $31.7 million mansion in Aspen, Colorado. The residence is spread over a five-acre estate overlooking the Castle Creek valley.
The property features a generous home gym, home theater, game room, 500-bottle wine cellar, tasting room, six ensuite bedrooms, and a three-car garage.
Butterfield also owns a $19 million home in San Francisco, which has seven bedrooms, eight bathrooms and is located in the upscale Presidio Heights neighborhood.