Woman kidnapped by her ex and taken to Idaho is rescued after 911 text, feds say
A woman kidnapped by her ex-boyfriend at gunpoint outside of her workplace in California was forced to drive hundreds of miles to Idaho, where she secretly texted 911 — leading to her rescue, federal prosecutors said.
Emiliano Jaime Ramos, 41, of Lompoc, California, sexually assaulted his ex-girlfriend over the course of the kidnapping and told her he planned on killing her in Idaho in December, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Idaho.
Now, Ramos has been sentenced to 15 years in prison in connection with the crime, the attorney’s office announced in a Nov. 7 news release.
On Aug. 17, he pleaded guilty to one count of kidnapping, according to prosecutors and his plea agreement.
McClatchy News contacted federal public defenders who represented Ramos in the case on Nov. 8 and didn’t receive an immediate response.
How officials say the kidnapping unfolded
On Dec. 21, when the woman was leaving her job as a medical assistant at a clinic in Pismo Beach, California, Ramos suddenly appeared, prosecutors said.
As she got inside her car, Ramos opened the vehicle’s back passenger door behind the driver’s seat and got inside, according to prosecutors.
Then, he pulled out a gun and held it to the right side of her body as she was in the driver’s seat, “leading her to believe she was going to be shot,” prosecutors said.
Prior to that day, the pair had broken up, and the woman blocked Ramos’s phone number and on social media, according to prosecutors, who also said she also “refused” to see Ramos after their break up.
Woman forced to drive over 850 miles
Ramos is accused of forcing the woman to drive several hundred miles before they ended up in Idaho, according to his plea agreement.
First, he made her drive to San Francisco from Pismo Beach, then to Reno, Nevada, his plea agreement says. From there, the agreement says he made her then drive to Jordan Valley, Oregon, and finally to Nampa, Idaho, where Ramos booked a hotel room. In total, the drive spanned about 860 miles. (p3)
At the hotel room, Ramos eventually fell asleep, and the woman seized the opportunity to contact 911, according to prosecutors.
She opened her cell phone that was on a night stand and texted 911 before powering off the phone and returning it to the nightstand, according to prosecutors.
Nampa police officers ultimately responded to the hotel, rescued the woman from Ramos and arrested him the morning of Dec. 23, prosecutors said.
U.S. Attorney Josh Hurwit commended the woman for her bravery, calling it “inspiring” in a statement Nov. 7.
“I salute law enforcement for rescuing her and bringing the defendant to justice,” Hurwit said in a video.
Ramos’s prison sentence will be followed by five years of supervised release, prosecutors said.
Nampa is about 20 miles west of Boise.
If you have experienced sexual assault and need someone to talk to, call the National Sexual Assault Hotline for support at 1-800-656-4673 or visit the hotline's online chatroom.
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