Woman Freed in Mistaken Abduction Scheme

A Woodland Hills mother was abducted at gunpoint and held captive for 28 hours before her kidnapers realized they had the wrong woman and released her unharmed, police said Friday.

“The suspects were very apologetic,” Los Angeles Police Lt. Fred Nixon said. “They told the victim, ‘We got the wrong house. You have nothing to worry about and we will not bother you any more.’ ”

No arrests have been made and the case remains under investigation, said Nixon, a department spokesman. An officer assigned to the case, Lt. Ron Lewis, refused to release the identity of the victim or any details about her ordeal, beyond those provided in a written release.

According to police, two men took a United Parcel Service driver hostage Tuesday, commandeering his truck in the 22900 block of Ventura Boulevard in Woodland Hills. They forced the driver at gunpoint to take them to a house in the area and pretend he was making a delivery there.

When the victim answered the door, the suspects forced their way inside. They apparently hoped to find the woman’s husband and told the victim that he owed someone $35,000 that they wanted to collect, the police report says.

The UPS truck driver, whom police also would not identify, escaped. The kidnapers forced the woman, described as in her 30s, to drive them away in her van, leaving behind two young children.

At some point, the woman was blindfolded and tied up, placed in the trunk of another vehicle and driven to an unknown location.

She was released Wednesday, about 28 hours later, in Playa del Rey, police said. Apparently the suspects realized she was the wrong woman after a ransom demand was made to her businessman husband.