RIVERSIDE: Kidnapped psychology student talked her way to freedom

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Source: UC Riverside

April 12 attempted kidnappings

6:30 p.m.: A woman saw a silver vehicle with tinted windows parked next to a pathway that leads from Big Springs Road to Lothian Residence Hall at UCR. A man followed her while holding up a blue bandana as if he was going to put it over her head. The woman threw a drink at the man and ran away. Suspect was described as an Asian man in his mid 20s, 5-foot-10 with a medium build and short blond hair wearing blue jeans.

7:30 p.m.: A woman was walking east on Big Springs Road approaching Lothian Residence Hall when she saw a four-door sedan blocking the sidewalk. A man got out and ran toward her. She ran away. The suspect was described as 20-30 years old, 5-foot-5 with black hair and an oval face. He was wearing a white T-shirt and glasses. There was no further description of the car.

Anyone with information on theses cases should call UCR police at 951-827-5222.

Source: UC Riverside

How to help

Anyone with information on the kidnapping is asked to call Cobb at 951-353-7135 or Detective Rick Wheeler at 951-353-7134.

A UC Riverside psychology student who was kidnapped in a parking garage near campus and then assaulted Sunday talked her abductor into letting her go, police said.

Riverside police Detective Rick Cobb said he believes that lessons the unidentified student learned in class could have saved her from serious injury.

“She befriended him in a way,” Cobb said at a news conference Monday, June 9. “She obviously kept her wits about her.”

The kidnapper was still being sought Monday.

Police are investigating whether the kidnapping is related to two attempted abductions April 12 near Lothian Residence Hall on the UCR campus. The descriptions of the suspect in Sunday’s incident and one of the suspects from April are similar — a white male with short- or medium-length blond hair and an age in the mid or late 20s to early 30s — but not a match.

UCR police say it is too soon to know whether there is a connection, university spokeswoman Kris Lovekin said.

UCR police alerted students and employees to Sunday’s kidnapping in an email. Students are taking final exams this week in advance of graduation ceremonies Friday through Monday.

“This is a very dangerous individual,” Cobb said.

Cobb gave this account of the student’s ordeal:

The woman had been shopping Sunday afternoon, and about 3:15 p.m., she was returning to her car in the parking garage on Iowa Avenue next to the University Village shopping center when a man dressed in all black grabbed her and forced her into his 2009 or newer charcoal gray four-door Nissan Sentra.

The man tied her up in the back seat, put something over her head to block her vision and struck her several times. They drove around the city for about 30 minutes. During that time, the woman was able to free her hands and remove the head covering.

The woman was able to draw a feeling of remorse out of the kidnapper and persuade him to let her go. The man drove back to a different area of the parking garage and allowed the woman to leave. She was not robbed. The woman called police about 4:15 p.m.

“She’s doing OK given the circumstances,” Cobb said.

Cobb declined to say whether the kidnapper was under the influence. Cobb said he thought the kidnapper might have something to tell police and hoped he might turn himself in.

“There might be some underlying issues,” Cobb said.

Psychology

RIVERSIDE: Kidnapped psychology student talked her way to freedom – Press