Woman kidnapped in frontier state and held captive for nearly a year escapes to gas station in New Jersey: police

A woman who authorities say was abducted after meeting a man in New Mexico last year and eventually taken to New Jersey reportedly managed to escape her alleged abductor by making a frantic dash to the nearest gas station. .

James W. Parrillo Jr., 57, was arrested on February 7 after a woman, whose name was not released by authorities, allegedly fled the Bass River Township apartment building they were living in and fled to a nearby gas station in New Jersey. This is stated in the message of the Prosecutor General’s Office on Friday.

Parrillo is charged with first-degree kidnapping, second-degree strangulation and aggravated assault, and third-degree felony. The woman met Parillo, whom she knew as “Brett Parker,” at a gas station on Interstate 10 in New Mexico sometime in February 2022,” court documents say.

At his request, she agreed to give him a lift to Arizona. The woman said she had been in a consensual relationship with the defendant for about a month when he physically assaulted her while they were both in California, after which she felt unable to end the relationship, prosecutors said.

JULY 4 PARADE SHOOTING SUSPECT’S FATHER Pleads Not Guilty On CHARGES REGARDING SON’S GUN LICENSE

During their life together, Parrillo allegedly took away the woman’s phone, confiscated and used her debit cards, and isolated her from her family. The couple allegedly arrived in New Jersey sometime in December.

They lived in a rented room in Bass for about two weeks when the woman managed to escape. Having noticed an internal bolt on the door of a nearby gas station during a previous visit, the alleged victim planned to run there to safety when the opportunity presented itself.

On February 7, Parrillo began beating and strangling a woman during an argument at a home that they were involved with several other people. The man stopped when he realized they weren’t alone in the house, and she ran out in nothing but shorts and a shirt in 42-degree weather.

Once at the gas station, the woman locked the door and told the attendants that she had been kidnapped for about a year. Surveillance footage from the station shows Parrillo following the woman to a gas station and trying to open the door, then leaving after finding it locked.

The New Jersey State Police responded to a gas station in Bass River Township where an alleged kidnap victim fled and her alleged kidnapper was arrested. (New Jersey State Police)

A gas station attendant called the New Jersey State Police, who soon apprehended Parrillo as he walked down 542 County Road. Parrillo is also charged with third-degree obstruction, fourth-degree obstruction, and refusal to provide a DNA sample.

Parrillo was detained at the Burlington County Jail awaiting trial following a hearing before Burlington County Superior Court Judge Christopher J. Garringer on Wednesday.

Arguing in favor of pre-trial detention, Assistant Attorney General Teresa Hilton said that information provided by the alleged victim and found on social media and other Internet sites indicates that Parrillo may have engaged in similar predatory activities with people in other states. .

Bass River is a large 72-square-mile town on the eastern edge of Burlington County in the New Jersey Pinelands. The woman, who police said had been in captivity for nearly a year, fled to a Bass River gas station earlier this month. (Bass River Township)

“This is a very disturbing case in which the defendant allegedly held a woman against her will for almost a year, traveling with her across the country before ending up here in New Jersey, where she managed to escape,” Attorney General Platkin said. in a statement. “We are reaching out to law enforcement agencies in various jurisdictions to identify other people who may have additional information about the defendant. Our investigation is ongoing and we are committed to doing everything we can to get justice for this survivor.”

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

“The kidnapping and abuse allegations by the defendant represent a year-long nightmare that the victim endured, spanning several states across the country and eventually ending here in New Jersey,” Colonel Patrick J. Callahan, Police Superintendent. This was reported by the New Jersey State Police. “The devotion and diligence of the soldiers, detectives and criminal justice staff is to be commended, but the strength and courage of the female victim who successfully eluded her attacker is nothing less than heroism.”