BLOOMINGTON, Minn. (AP) - Two people are accused of kidnapping a woman, beating her and holding her for ransom at a suburban Twin Cities hotel.
The woman from Little Canada was lured to a car in Oakdale Monday, thrown in the trunk and driven to a hotel in Bloomington were she was instructed to contact family and friends for a $5,000 ransom, officials said.
One of the suspects choked and pistol whipped the victim, according to court documents. The captors threatened to shoot the woman if the ransom was not paid, according to prosecutors.
Ramsey County Undersheriff Mike Martin tells the Star Tribune, law enforcement officers used GPS cellphone data and social media to find the woman who spent the night in a bathroom at the hotel.
The victim’s father worked with law enforcement to set up a spot to meet the kidnappers. Deputies who had pinged the victim’s cellphone in a nearby hotel located the victim.
Jason Tucker, 37, and Hailey Flynn, 20, both of Minneapolis, were arrested. They’re charged with felony kidnapping in Ramsey County District Court. It’s not clear whether they have hired attorneys to speak on their behalf.
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