A 22-year-old man who kidnapped a woman at gunpoint from her Turlock home was apprehended by Stanislaus County Sheriff’s deputies as the department’s helicopter tracked his movements to an area outside Newman.
The 30-year-old female victim sustained non-life-threatening injuries, including scratches and bruises from the ordeal on June 18. A child that was pistol-whipped by the suspect did not have any significant injuries, the sheriff’s department reported.
The suspect was identified by the sheriff’s department as Angel Primitivo Garcia.
Shortly after 9:30 p.m. on June 18, Garcia forced his way into the woman’s house in the 100 block of S Morgan Road in Turlock and threatened her and other occupants with a gun. At one point he pistol-whipped a child and then dragged the woman out of the house and into his vehicle, according to the sheriff’s department.
The victim and the suspect had been in a previous relationship.
Multiple people contacted 911 to report the kidnapping, including the victim’s 12-year-old son. They were able to provide the sheriff’s deputies with a description of the vehicle and the direction of travel.
The 12-year-old told 911 dispatchers, “There is a guy, he is the father of my little brother and he is trying to kill my mom. He has a gun.”
Multiple deputies began responding to the scene, including the air unit. AIR101 was able to locate the car driving at a high rate of speed on Central Avenue in Newman. Ground units began responding to catch up to the vehicle that was then traveling south on Kelley Road.
The car came to a stop when it reached the Hills Ferry Bridge that was blocked with barricades due to construction.
The driver exited the sedan and ran to the victim’s side. She attempted to escape but Garcia grabbed her and placed her between himself and the deputies, who had just arrived.
“Believing Garcia was armed, for the safety of the victim, deputies were giving commands and beginning to negotiate with him,” the sheriff’s department stated.
Garcia eventually released the woman and he was taken into custody. Garcia was booked into the Stanislaus County Jail for kidnapping, false imprisonment, assault likely to cause great bodily injury, domestic violence, child endangerment, burglary, criminal threats, and brandishing of a replica firearm. He remains in custody in lieu of $495,000 bail.
