PHOENIX – A patrol officer spotted a suspected kidnapper's car and aided in the rescue of a 5-year-old girl, who was found uninjured in what police are calling Phoenix's "Christmas miracle."

Natalie Flores was rescued at about 9:30 p.m. Friday, more than seven hours after she was scooped up by a stranger while playing with her sisters outside their Phoenix apartment building.

"She is alive and well," police spokesman Sgt. Andy Hill said.

Hill credited a "very alert" policeman with taking quick action after spotting what appeared to be the suspect's vehicle driving on a west Phoenix avenue, even though the license plate differed from reports.

Officer Mike Burns pulled alongside and "saw a suspect that matched the description and thought he saw a small child," Hill told The Associated Press.

He said the pickup sped off, and Burns gave chase and alerted the force. Officers put spike strips across the road several blocks away that punctured the suspect's tires, causing him to crash on the roadside.

The man took off on foot but was caught and arrested a block away after a brief struggle.

"She is alive and well thanks to the timely diligence of officer Burns," Hill said. "It is rare in stranger abduction cases so much time can pass without a tragic ending. This was truly a Christmas miracle."

Police said the suspect is a 45-year-old man, but they haven't released his name and or any other details.

Hill said the man was being questioned by police and held on charges of kidnapping, aggravated assault on a police officer and felony pursuit.

The sergeant said Natalie appeared to be in good shape but was being examined by health officials.

Police received the call that Natalie had been taken at about 2:15 p.m. An Amber Alert was issued, and authorities began combing the area on foot, by car and with helicopters.

Hill said the child had been playing in a common area at the apartment complex with her two sisters, ages 7 and 9, when a man parked his brown pickup in a nearby parking lot and walked over to them carrying a camera.

"He physically grabbed the 7-year-old girl and forcibly took a photo of her," Hill said.

The man then forced Natalie into the truck and drove away. Witnesses reported that as the man was fleeing, he hit a parked car before entering southbound 19th Avenue.

Natalie and her sisters had been staying at an apartment in the complex with an aunt who has legal custody of them, Hill said. The girls' parents live separately out of state.

After the abduction, Natalie's older sister went to a neighbor's apartment and pounded on the door, The Arizona Republic reported. The woman who answered, Donna Reed , said the girl was carrying a ball and appeared to be shaking.

"She said some man just took her little sister," Reed told the newspaper. "She was a nervous wreck."

Reed called 911.

AP writers Katie Oyan and Mark Carlson in Phoenix contributed to this report.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091226/ap_on_re_us/us_arizona_girl_abducted FOLLOW UP:

AP – Photo of suspect, Larry Jon Ladwig   Suspect identified in kidnapping of Phoenix girl by AMANDA LEE MYERS, Associated Press December 27, 2009 PHOENIX – When Phoenix police officer Mike Burns pulled near a brown pickup he suspected the two people inside were a kidnapper and his 5-year-old victim. When the truck raced off, he was sure. "There was no doubt in my mind," Burns told reporters on Saturday, several hours after the little girl was rescued. "If he disappears, we may not get her back." Determined not to let the truck out of his sight, the patrolman set out on a Christmas night car chase through the streets of north Phoenix that ended after 10 minutes in the arrest of 45-year-old Larry Jon Ladwig. The frightened girl was taken to a police facility that aids young victims of crime, where it was determined she had been molested. The girl was treated and is back home with her family, police Sgt. Andy Hill said Saturday.   Ladwig was booked into jail on charges of kidnapping, sexual molestation of a child, aggravated assault of a police officer and felony flight. It's unclear whether Ladwig has a lawyer, and the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office did not immediately respond to a request to interview him. Hill said statistics show that if police don't recover children abducted by strangers within the first several hours, "chances are slim of recovering them alive." "We really did have a Christmas miracle," he said. The girl was rescued at about 9:30 p.m. Friday, more than seven hours after police allege that Ladwig kidnapped her while she was playing outside a Phoenix apartment building . The Associated Press is not reporting the girl's name because she may be the victim of a sex crime. The AP had named the girl after her abduction and an Amber alert was issued. When Burns' spotted Ladwig's pickup, he alerted the force. Officers put spike strips across the road several blocks away that punctured Ladwig's tires, causing him to crash on the roadside. Ladwig took off on foot but was caught and arrested a block away after a brief struggle during which Hill said he punched an officer in the face. "It makes you feel good," Burns said of his part in the girl's rescue. "It takes a while to soak in." Police received the call that the girl had been taken at about 2:15 p.m. An Amber Alert was issued, and authorities began combing the area on foot, by car and with helicopters. Hill said the child had been playing in a common area at the apartment complex with her two sisters, ages 7 and 9, when a man parked his brown pickup in a nearby parking lot and walked over to them carrying a camera. He said the man violently pulled down the 7-year-old's pants, took a photo of her, then grabbed the 5-year-old and threw her into the truck through a window. "That's pretty doggone violent," Hill said. "He's a weapon himself ... (The girl) has got a lot to go through now. She's not unscarred from this, obviously in a number of ways. She's got a long road ahead of her." After the kidnapping, the 5-year-old's older sister pounded for help on the door of a neighbor, who called police. The three sisters live with an aunt, who has legal custody of them, Hill said. The girls' parents live separately out of state. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091227/ap_on_re_us/us_arizona_girl_abducted