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9-Year-Old Kidnap Victim convinces Abductor to Release Her

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Jeannette Tamayo was nine when she was abducted in June 2003, and exhibited a presence of mind that few adults would have in a similar circumstance.

10DHome from school, Jeannette entered her house, unaware that a man had been following her; he entered too, and that’s when the nightmare began. Soon after, her mother and brother arrived but were promptly beaten up by the man, and he then handcuffed the girl and crammed her inside a box inside his car.

The man took her to the second story of a house where he raped her for a few days and threatened to kill her. As a story on abcnews.go.com reports, Jeannette realized that her only chance of survival was to gain the man’s trust.

Predators see their victims as objects more than as human beings. Instead of constantly screaming and crying, Jeannette communicated with thoughtful words and kept her cool. To her abductor, she wasn’t some shrieking, pleading object. She was a person who started conversation. This approach is highly tactical and is considered a life saver in many abduction and hostage cases.

The young girl said she treated the man like a “normal” person. Soon after that decision, he took off her handcuffs, even allowing her to roam the house. The girl was too infuriated to let Stockholm syndrome poison her, but she continued keeping collected, even sharing with him her plans for the future.

While watching TV Jeannette saw something about asthma tests. She told the man she had asthma and would die without her medication. Next thing she knew, he drove her to a street corner and dropped her off.

However, Jeannette had made a point during the ride to his house to imprint the directions. She relayed them to the police and they arrested him.

Who knows, this could have ended up a Michelle Knight or Jaycee Dugard type situation. Instead of being blindly compliant, this little girl was strategic. Had she been nothing more than a crying, shrieking object, it’s easy to believe that her captor, David Montiel Cruz, who was sentenced to 100-plus years, would have killed her or kept her hostage for years.

Robert Siciliano personal security and identity theft expert and speaker is the author of 99 Things You Wish You Knew Before Your Identity Was Stolen. See him knock’em dead in this identity theft prevention video.

Father nabs Daughter’s Kidnapper

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So if your family goes to bed, and a sociopath walks in at 4:30 in the morning (because you left a door unlocked!), and grabs your child while you’re asleep …you’d better hope your guardian angel is on steroids.

2BAn Associated Press article reports that a Utah man managed to rescue his 5-year-old daughter as an intruder was carrying her across the lawn after kidnapping her at 4:30 am.

The parents left a door unlocked! The father never heard screams, but was a light enough sleeper that he heard the front door opening, then heard the child talking.

The time lapse between when the front door opened and when the father caught the intruder outside is not clear. But there was enough time for the sociopath to get into the girl’s basement bedroom, pick her up, exit the house, and make it partway across the front lawn before dad came out and demanded he hand her over to him. The intruder did so, then fled. If dad had been a few seconds delayed…this could have been another “missing child’s body found” story.

The intruder is Troy Morley, 48. He was stupid enough to break into another house shortly after this incident, just a few blocks away, entering through a doggie door. Good thing he wasn’t bright enough to figure that a doggie door means a dog lives there and will start bark its head off at his presence.

And yes, that’s how the house’s owner knew he was there; the dogs barked. By this time, police were already nearby searching for the scumbag, and a police dog bit him in the shoulder after the house’s occupants called out for help.

Police said that the attempted abduction was random and still don’t know if Morley knew ahead of time a little girl lived there, or if he decided to kidnap her on a whim upon discovering her bedroom while looking for things to steal.

Though one account says that the little girl was “talking,” a neighbor says that her younger sibling heard screams. The girl’s family is keeping a low profile and trying to get on with their life as normally as possible. No doubt, the parents will never go to bed with an unlocked door ever again.

It took this incident to inspire a couple down the street to consider a home security system. April Parry has three kids and says in the AP article, “That is your biggest fear as a parent.” But don’t wait till someone tries to abduct a child down the street to get an alarm system! Get one NOW. Sociopaths aren’t waiting for you to get smart.

Robert Siciliano personal and home security specialist to BestHomeSecurityCompanys.com discussing burglar proofing your home on Fox Boston. Disclosures.