A state agency has joined forces with local investigators to catch a group of suspects who ambushed, assaulted and kidnapped a Yazoo City couple last night.
Capt. Richard Brooks, with the Yazoo City Police Department, said a local man and woman were assaulted and kidnapped from a home on Cypress Circle around 10:30 p.m. last night. As of press time, no arrests have been made, but Brooks said there are some strong leads within the investigation as video footage of the suspects and their vehicle from a nearby convenient store are currently being analyzed.
“The female victim was exiting her vehicle outside of her home when three to four men wearing masks ambushed her,” Brooks said. “They forced her inside her home, tied her up and ransacked her house.”
Brooks said the victim’s boyfriend, who frequently visits the home, arrived at the scene after the female did not answer calls to her cell phone.
“The suspects then attacked him and pistol whipped him,” Brooks said. “They then tied the male victim up and stole his jewelry and money.”
Brooks said the suspects eventually placed both victims in the female’s Cadillac Escalade and left the scene. The suspects also had their own vehicle, which followed the stolen victim’s vehicle, towards the Clinton area.
“Once they got near Clinton, the female victim was released in her vehicle with instructions to obtain ransom money for her boyfriend,” Brooks said. “The suspects then placed the boyfriend in their vehicle and left the scene.”
Brooks said the female contacted a family member about the ransom money and headed towards Jackson to get it.
“That family member eventually told her to pull over and wait while he notified the Jackson Police Department,” Brooks said. “She eventually stopped near Northside Drive when JPD became involved.”
The suspects placed the male victim in the trunk of their vehicle, removing his pants and shoes, before heading into Warren County.
“Somewhere in Warren County, the boyfriend was able to hit the trunk release button,” Brooks said. “He jumped out of the moving vehicle and was seriously injured. But he managed to run to a nearby residence and contact the authorities.”
The male victim was transported to River Region Medical Center and has since been released.
“Once JPD notified us, we went to the victim’s home around 3:30 a.m.,” Brooks said. “A blue Honda Accord, belonging to we believe one of the victims, was still running in the driveway. The door to the home had been kicked in, and we discovered the house had been ransacked. There was also a lot of blood evidence in the home. The female victim has small children, but they were not home at the time of the incident, and no one else was in the home when we processed the scene.”
Since the incident crossed several jurisdiction lines, Brooks asked the Mississippi Bureau of Investigations for assistance.
“We have interviewed the female victim, but the boyfriend is still in so much pain,” Brooks added. “We are about to start enhancing some video footage, and I feel we will have more to go with as this investigation continues.”
