An incredible presence of mind saved the life of a woman who was kidnapped, beaten, sexually assaulted, bound, gagged, thrown in the trunk of her own car and driven to Chula Vista, according to police.
The victim was allegedly tricked into meeting Marco Velasquez, 42 in Oakland on March 24.
“Velasquez then held her at knife-point and assaulted her,” said Lt. Roxana Kennedy. “The victim received multiple injuries including two black eyes, broken teeth, and several abrasions and bruises.”
The suspect bound and gagged the victim, put her in the trunk of her own car and drove her from Oakland to Chula Vista, police said.
“Velasquez told her that he was going to take her to Mexico and kill her,” said Lt. Kennedy.
The woman managed to work the gag free and engage the suspect in conversation through the rear-folding seat of the vehicle, between the trunk and passenger compartment, police said.
She then convinced him to take her to the hospital, where she told staff about the attack.
Chula Vista police arrested Velasquez in the waiting room at Scripps Memorial Hospital in Chula Vista at 4:30 a.m. on March 25. He has since been charged with nine felony counts including kidnapping, false imprisonment, sexual assault, terrorist threats, and domestic violence.
Lt. Kennedy says it was a 15-hour ordeal, and the woman's "presence of mind" to be able to talk to her kidnapper saved her life.
Velasquez and the victim shared a previous relationship but had since separated, police said.
The woman in her thirties is not being identified because she is a victim of sexual assault and domestic violence.
