Background: News footage of an elementary school in Provo, Utah (KUTV). Inset: Shannon Tufuga (Facebook).
A Utah mother was arrested after police said she kidnapped an 11-year-old boy who she believed was bullying one of her children.
Shannon Tufuga, 40, was charged with child kidnapping and aggravated child abuse on Monday. According to an affidavit obtained by Montana-based news outlet Cowboy State Daily, Tufuga allegedly drove around a neighborhood in Provo, Utah, one day in September 2025 looking for an 11-year-old boy identified in court documents as K.B.
After Tufuga found the boy riding his bike, she allegedly pulled her vehicle in front of the boy’s path and made him get inside her vehicle. She then allegedly drove the boy back to her home.
According to the affidavit, Tufuga brought K.B. back to her family’s home against his will and without his parents’ permission. Police said that Tufuga believed the boy was bullying her children, some of whom have special needs. Tufuga allegedly brought K.B. back to her home to force him to apologize to her daughter.
Local CBS affiliate KUTV also obtained the court documents, which stated that K.B. did eventually apologize to Tufuga’s daughter. But then Tufuga allegedly “threatened to have her husband beat up K.B.” and told the boy he was “lucky she did not run over [his] bike.”
Amberlee Collazo, the boy’s mother, spoke to local NBC outlet KSL and provided more details about the situation between the two families and what led up to the alleged incident on Sept. 17, 2025. She told KSL that Tufuga’s daughter had a crush on her son for the past two years, but the attention she was giving him was becoming overwhelming for the boy.
Collazo told KSL, “One day he got fed up with the fact that she doesn’t leave him alone.” She said her son responded to Tufuga’s daughter with a negative comment. After that purported interaction, Tufuga allegedly started targeting Collazo’s son.
According to Collazo, Tufuga allegedly grabbed her son’s arm when she found him riding his bike. After bringing the boy to her family’s house, Tufuga’s husband was purportedly standing in the same room with a “gun on his hip.” Once the alleged confrontation was over, Tufuga allegedly told the boy to “get the eff out, and he ran all the way home.” Both KUTV and Cowboy State Daily reported that according to the court documents, Tufuga brought the boy home herself.
KUTV reported that Tufuga was working as a crossing guard for Provo City, but she was no longer employed after the allegations were made against her.
Tufuga’s attorney, Pona Sitake, provided a written statement to KUTV that read in part, “We respectfully deny the allegations made in the charging document filed this week. We believe these allegations stem from a troubled child and are not accurate. We look forward to presenting evidence to the State regarding repeat challenges our client’s children have faced at school, including the elementary school administration’s ongoing efforts to address bullying and maintain a safe environment.”
KUTV reported that Tufuga told them that her children, some of whom have disabilities, have experienced bullying by Collazo’s son in the past. When the alleged behavior was brought up at their elementary school, no action was taken. KUTV reported that the Provo City School District would not provide a comment due to an ongoing investigation.
The affidavit stated that the boy suffered “serious emotional distress” and “high anxiety” that caused him to “alter his daily routines significantly.” Collazo told KSL that Tufuga never contacted her about what was going on between their children.
Tufuga was charged with one count each of child kidnapping and aggravated child abuse. She did not appear on an inmate roster for the Utah County Sheriff’s Office on Wednesday. Her next court date is scheduled for April 30.
