‘Extreme Kidnapping’ Is No Risk-Free Thrill

Apr 102013
 

iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — Being pulled out of a car at gunpoint by masked men while heavy metal music plays in the background would be a nightmarish experience for most people.

Not so for the increasing number of people who pay hundreds of dollars to experience it.

“It’s more or less a thrill entertainment of a kidnapping scenario,” said Shanel Hill, a professional abductor for the Detroit-based company called Extreme Kidnapping.

For about $500, you can get the four-hour “econo-kidnapping” package, or spend thousands of dollars for more deluxe packages that can run a full day.

“Some people come to us because they want to lose control,” Hill said.

The company’s founder, Adam Thick, says he was inspired to start the company nearly a decade ago by The Game, the 1997 movie starring Michael Douglas as a wealthy investment banker given the gift of a “game” that brings excitement into his life.

Law enforcement experts, however, say the excitement created by the all-too-real kidnappings could create real-life danger.

An alleged abduction in New York City made headlines earlier this month as police investigated whether the incident – in which a man with a plastic bag over his head and another wearing a mask forced a woman into a minivan at gunpoint – was a hoax staged to celebrate a friend’s birthday. It was.

“What you’ve done is create a situation where both the police, the victims and the fake bad guy could be harmed,” ABC News analyst and former FBI special agent Brad Garrett said.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio



70-Year-Old Detroit High School Girls’ Basketball Coach Shoots Attackers

Feb 032013
 

Ingram Publishing/Thinkstock(DETROIT, Mich.) — The 70-year-old girls’ basketball coach of a Detroit high school shot two teenage attackers who tried to rob him as he was escorting two players to their cars, police said.

The coach was allegedly approached by two men who brandished a gun at him as he was walking two players to their cars near Martin Luther King Jr. Senior High School Friday night, ABC’s Detroit affiliate WXYZ-TV reported.

The coach, who police said has a concealed pistol license and is reportedly a reserve police officer, then pulled out his gun and shot at his attackers.

One of the attackers died from the shooting, while the other was rushed to the hospital, WXYZ reported.

Both of the coach’s alleged attackers attended Martin Luther King Jr. Senior High School, but one of the students had recently been expelled and was not allowed to be on school grounds, WXYZ reported.

The coach was not a teacher at the school.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Massive Pileup on Detroit Highway Leaves Four Dead

Jan 312013
 

Steve Allen/Thinkstock(DETROIT) — At least four people were killed Thursday morning in a chain reaction accident on a highway in southwest Detroit.

Three of the deceased were children, according to Michigan State Police Captain Monica Yesh, who couldn’t confirm if the four victims were all in the same vehicle.

The pileup on Interstate 75 involved dozens of cars and stretched for more than a mile.

Yesh said whiteout conditions were likely to blame.

“There was a huge snow squall that came through, probably only lasted 15 to 20 seconds, pretty much took everybody’s sight away,” she said.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Massive Pileup on Detroit Highway Leaves Three Dead

Jan 312013
 

Steve Allen/Thinkstock(DETROIT) — At least three people were killed Thursday morning in a chain reaction accident on a highway in southwest Detroit.

Two of the deceased were children, according to Michigan State Police Captain Monica Yesh, who couldn’t confirm if the victims were all in the same vehicle.

The pileup on Interstate 75 involved dozens of cars and stretched for more than a mile.

Yesh said whiteout conditions were likely to blame.

“There was a huge snow squall that came through, probably only lasted 15 to 20 seconds, pretty much took everybody’s sight away,” she said.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Rocky Marquez: Nationwide Manhunt for Escaped Inmate

Jan 272013
 

ABC News(DETROIT) — A nationwide manhunt is underway for a career criminal who has twice escaped from jail by switching identities with other inmates.

Authorities did not notice Rocky Marquez, 34, was missing from a Detroit jail until five days after he walked out the front door undetected.

“Mr. Marquez does have a bit of a head start, but we have the best of the best working on this case and I’m confident Rocky will be put behind bars,” said Deputy U.S. Marshal Frederick J. Freeman.

A fugitive apprehension team along with the U.S. Marshals and other police agencies are searching for Marquez.

According to police, on Jan. 20, Marquez switched ID wristbands with another inmate, who was about to be freed on bond. Marquez then simply walked out of the Wayne County jail.

“He’s smarter than your average criminal. He’s somehow getting inmates to cooperate with him to use their identities to walk out of jail,” Freeman said.

This was not the first time Marquez staged a jailbreak.

According to U.S. Marshal David Gonzalez, Marquez pulled the same stunt in a Phoenix prison eight months ago when he switched wristbands with another inmate who he had befriended and who had a similar complexion and build.

“He obviously has a penchant for getting out of jail and wanting to stay out of jail, but hopefully we can put an end to that run here soon,” Gonzalez said.

Marquez was arrested in Detroit after the U.S. Marshals tracked a car they believed he was using to the city.

Marquez, whose criminal record includes drug smuggling, perjury and witness tampering, was awaiting extradition to Phoenix when he escaped last week.

Officials from the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office said there would be an investigation into the reasons for Marquez’s escape.

“We have policies and procedures in place that should have prevented something like this from happening,” the sheriff’s office told ABC News.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

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