Cops: Tip led to arrests in kidnap, sex assault of Kan. deputy
JOHNSON COUNTY, Kan. — Police say a tip from someone watching the news led to the arrest of two men in the kidnap and sexual assault of an off-duty Kansas deputy.
The deputy had just parked her car and was walking to work at the jail where she works at around 11:30 p.m. Friday night, when she was grabbed, forced into a car against her will and driven away, reports CBS affiliate KCTV.
Her face covered, she was sexually assaulted for two hours by two men before they released her, according to investigators. Battered and scared, the victim, who is in her 20s, walked through the dark toward a light she could make out about half a mile away. It turned out to be the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office.
“She got dropped off in a very dark, remote location and she just started walking toward the light,” said Jackson County Sheriff Mike Sharp. “It was very fortunate that we had somebody there that was able to bring her in and make her feel safe again. I can’t imagine what she went through. I know that she had to be terrified.”
The deputy was able to give a description of her attackers to investigators, but the Johnson County Sheriff’s Department says the tip that led to arrests came from someone watching the news after police released a blurry image of a car at a gas station, believed to be the one used to abduct the victim.
A massive manhunt lasted throughout the weekend and into Monday night, when detectives tracked down suspects William Luth, 24, and Brady Newman-Caddell, 21. Investigators say surveillance video ties the men to the crimes.
Each suspect has been charged with counts of aggravated kidnapping, rape and aggravated sodomy. They are being held on $1 million bond.