Poughkeepsie police accuse city man of kidnapping, attempted robbery, child endangerment
City of Poughkeepsie police said a man kidnapped a woman and her two young children at knifepoint Monday and tried to rob them.
Police said the woman reported that the man approached her while she was sitting in her parked car on Spruce Street with her two children, ages 3 and 5, around 6:45 p.m. on Monday. He showed her the knife, said he was getting into the car, and to do what he said or he would hurt the kids.
When the man, later identified as Derrick Woodhouse, 49, of the city of Poughkeepsie, got in the car, he told the woman to drive to a store, according to the police. When they arrived, he told the woman to get money from her bank account. While she did that, he waited in the car with the children.
When the woman returned, Woodhouse told her to drive to a second location, police said. While at the second location, the woman began to cry and Woodhouse screamed at her. Woodhouse's screaming caused pedestrians in the area to notice the vehicle. That prompted Woodhouse to exit the car without taking the money. Woodhouse then fled the scene.
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Police said just after 10 p.m. Tuesday, officers responded to investigate a report of a suspicious person inside a Main Street address. When they arrived, the officers recognized the suspicious person as Woodhouse and placed him under arrest without incident.
Woodhouse was charged with second-degree kidnapping and attempted first-degree robbery, both felonies, and endangering the welfare of a child, a misdemeanor. He was arraigned and is being held without bail at Dutchess County Jail, pending a Friday hearing in Poughkeepsie City Court.
Anyone with information on this incident or similar incidents is asked to call city of Poughkeepsie police at 845-451-7577.
Mike Randall covers breaking news for the Times Herald-Record, Poughkeepsie Journal and The Journal News/lohud.com. Reach him at mrandall@th-record.com or on Twitter @mikerandall845.
This article originally appeared on Poughkeepsie Journal: Man charged with kidnapping and attempted robbery in Poughkeepsie
