Manitoba RCMP are crediting a mom who acted cool under pressure for preventing a harrowing kidnapping from turning out much worse.
The incident took place Friday afternoon, when the woman, who was with her two-year-old daughter, stopped to help a man who appeared to be in distress on the side of the road.
Police said the man, who had been faking the medical distress, got in her car and demanded she drive him to Winnipeg.
The mother and daughter managed to get out safely in Winnipeg near Polo Park, and the 62-year-old suspect was arrested and charged on Sunday after a search involving RCMP and Winnipeg police.
Insp. Paul Peddle told 680 CJOB’s The Start that the mother remained calm in the moment, calling 911 despite the kidnapper’s presence.
Police said they received a call that got disconnected soon after, but they were able to hear the voices of a man and a woman, and the call played a big role in helping officers find them quickly.
“We’ve got to give the mom a lot of credit here,” Peddle said.
“She was in a very chaotic, traumatic situation with her child and she had the courage to make the right decisions in these stressful situations.”
Peddle said it’s human nature to want to help someone in need.
“When you hear stories like this — I know it’s extremely rare, a situation like this, a kidnapping — that’s the thing we always want to do. We always want to help people.”
The suspect is in custody facing a number of serious charges, including two counts of kidnapping, two counts of forcible confinement and abduction of a person under 14.
He’s also facing three counts of assault with a weapon on a police officer, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle and possessing stolen property over $5,000, in connection with an incident earlier that afternoon outside a Portage la Prairie hotel.