SANTA PAULA : Man With Knife Kidnaps 3 in Car
Three Santa Paula residents were robbed and briefly kidnaped when a man entered their car as they left a bar and placed a knife to the driver’s throat, police said.
Jose Contreras, 29, Nancy Vasquez, 21, and Antonio Perez, 21, left Ruben’s Lounge at 1247 E. Harvard Blvd. about 1 a.m. Sunday. They were about to pull away from the bar when the suspect opened the driver’s-side door and got into the back seat behind Perez, put a knife to his throat and told him to drive, said Santa Paula Police Chief Walt Adair.
During the short ride, the suspect took jewelry and cash from all three victims. After taking what they had, the man ordered the three out of the car and drove off alone, Adair said.
The victims reported the theft to Santa Paula police about 4 a.m., said Adair, who said he did not know if the car had been recovered.
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