A woman police believe abducted a 2-year-old child was charged on April 20 with assault and kidnapping, according to local sources. Washington authorities arrested the woman after she allegedly kidnapped the boy and his mother, holding them for several hours before being discovered. The criminal charges she faces in this case could see her face serious jail time.
According to statements taken from the alleged victim, the woman, who was the current girlfriend of the boy’s birth father, entered the family home and shot the mother with a Taser. The mother said she was then bound and forced into the back of a vehicle, along with her son. During this time the vehicle was stopped by police, but the mother said she was warned not to cry out or she would be thrown from the vehicle.
The mother and son were allegedly taken to the woman’s home, where the mother spent several hours tied to a cupboard in the garage before managing to escape. An Amber Alert had been issued for the child, which was seen by the accused woman’s brother, who contacted police. The alleged kidnapper is now being held on $250,000 bail.
Of all the criminal charges an individual might face, kidnapping ranks highly as one of the charges that can haunt a person who is wrongly accused. In this case, Washington prosecutors will have to prove that events unfolded the way the mother alleges, as the child is too young to be a credible witness in a trial. Discrepancies in the report from the mother will likely be closely examined by the woman’s defense team.
Source: People, “Washington State Woman Charged with Kidnapping 2-Year-Old Boy and His Mother”, Christine Pelisek, April 21, 2015