The son of an elderly woman investigators say was severely beaten, tied up, abducted from her home and left in her own car for two days, calls his Mom a survivor.
Natalie Herbst-Vinge, known as Sandy, remained hospitalized Thursday.
Sandy's son says the suspect went to her home on Resmar Place in unincorporated La Mesa to clean her carpet. Instead, he says, the suspect sold her a vacumm cleaner for $2,300, came back to thank her Monday, saying the sale helped him win a trip to Hawaii, then that night returned again saying he needed to use the phone because he had broken up with his girlfriend. That's when he says the suspect attacked her, bound her with duct tape, and dragged her to her Dodge wagon.
When the victim woke up, two other suspects were also in the vehicle. The victim chewed through the duct tape and screamed for help while they were at a gas station, to no avail. The kidnappers then parked the car for the night, leaving the woman inside, said investigators. The next day, the kidnappers returned, then drove around the County with the woman in the trunk.
Police said they tried to pull over the wagon for running a red light on Tangerine Street in El Cajon shortly after midnight Wednesday, but the driver refused to yield and eventually managed to elude officers. Shortly afterward, officers spotted the vehicle with the crooks inside, who fled on foot. Luis Osbourne, 18, was taken into custody immediately, Jeffrey Nelson, 19 and Antoinette Baker, 19, were arrested after a manhunt in the area.
Deputies found the elderly woman tied up in the back of the car.
“This is highly unusual ... especially for the amount of time that we’re looking at here -- with several days in one vehicle, that’s a bit unusual, and for someone who’s 75,” Sgt. Mark Varnau said.
A shovel was found in the back of the car, but investigators say they’re not jumping to any conclusions.
“You could infer that that’s there for some particular reason other than gardening, but it may simply belong to the victim,” Varnau said.
The victim was hospitalized. Her son says the mother of three and grandmother of two is doing well, refusing all medication.
Investigators say the motive was financial gain.
