A badly bruised 75-year-old Southern California woman who was kidnapped and beaten will face her attackers in court when she testifies during a preliminary hearing.
La Mesa resident Sandy Herbst-Vinge was abducted from her home in December and locked in the trunk of her own car. Read article here
Vinge is expected to testify Monday afternoon as part of the preliminary hearing for the suspects in her attack.
Three teenagers were arrested in connection to the case: Luis Osborne, Jeffrey Nelson and Antoinette Baker. They face a host of charges, including robbery, kidnapping and torture. They have all pleaded not guilty. Read article here
Prosecutors called co-workers of Jeffrey Nelson to testify Monday morning. Nelson is accused of selling Vinge a vacuum cleaner earlier in the day and then returning to her La Mesa home where he allegedly attacked and abducted her.
One co-worker described seeing Nelson take a marijuana pipe from an unrelated customer and smoke it after leaving the customer's home. The man testified that when he told Nelson he would lose his job over the theft, Nelson attacked him, hitting him in the jaw.
Nelson and two other suspects drove around for more than 24 hours before deputies pulled the car over after it went through a red light. Investigators said they also found a shovel in that car.
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Deputy Sheriff Mark Snelling testified Monday that when he initially opened up the trunk of Vinge’s car, he first thought he had stumbled on a high school prank. Snelling said he was shocked when he asked the woman’s age and heard Vinge respond "75."
