Woman, Left for Dead in Desert, Lives

A 22-year-old woman who was abducted from a South Los Angeles street, beaten, bound and apparently left for dead in the Mojave Desert, was in serious condition Sunday in an unnamed hospital, a spokesman for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said.

The badly injured woman, whom authorities declined to identify, flagged down a motorist Friday evening after she untied herself and escaped from a large plastic bag in which she had been stuffed, said Sheriff’s Deputy Chris Robbins. She was reportedly picked up in the desert about 22 miles west of Lancaster.

The woman was taken to Antelope Valley Hospital Medical Center where she underwent surgery for a depressed skull fracture and was treated for severe cuts and bruises, Robbins said. She has since been transferred to another medical facility that Robbins declined to identify.

Based on a statement made by the victim, Henry McKay, 48, of Los Angeles was arrested and booked Friday night for investigation of kidnaping and attempted murder, Robbins said. Deputies are also seeking two unidentified women who allegedly were involved in the kidnaping, he added.

Authorities were able to provide only a sketchy account of the incident, which began Thursday afternoon as the woman was walking near Main Street and El Segundo Boulevard in the Athens section of Los Angeles County, west of Watts.

The woman told investigators that she was forced into a car by a man and two women, tied up, beaten, and driven to the desert, where she was left in the plastic bag, Robbins said.

“We don’t know a motive for the incident or what her relationship was with the suspects,” Robbins said. “The interview with her was limited because of her condition.”