Two Indianapolis teens were kidnapped and held for ransom after their sister stole money from her ex-boyfriend.
According to a federal complaint obtained by Michigan Live, Whitney Blackwell – an exotic dancer at Club Venus in Detroit – stole $120,000 in narcotic proceeds, cocaine and OxyContin pills from alleged drug dealer John Thomas, prompting him and five others to abduct Blackwell's underage siblings on Monday morning.
"He went and kidnapped my brother and sister because he couldn't find me," Blackwell, 27, told the Indianapolis Star in a jailhouse interview where she is being charged for drug dealing.
"If I would have just stayed, he would have just killed me and my kid and he wouldn't have hurt my brother and sister." Blackwell claims she only stole $46,000 in order to escape town with her boyfriend and child.
After armed invaders allegedly came looking for the stolen money in their Indianapolis home, Aaron, 16, and Emma, 13, were bound with zip-ties, blindfolded and taken to separate locations.
The kidnappers reportedly forced Aaron to call Blackwell's brother, Stanley Pernell, and demand "envelopes of money" to be delivered to a rendezvous location in Miami and, if he didn't comply, they would "chop the kids' fingers off."
Officers set up surveillance on Aaron's suspected location and found him in the luggage compartment of an SUV after a high-speed chase. Emma was transported to an Ohio Taco Bell by her kidnappers where she was given $200 and told to take a taxi home.
Officers also tracked Pernell to a home with large amounts of money stashed in several locations, including under a pile of trash in the basement. Police also found evidence of drugs and identification for Blackwell.
Thomas and the other suspects identified as Bernando Reeves, Ali Hussain Ashore, Mohammed Karkash, April Sandell, and Alaa Al-Salehi are being charged with conspiracy to commit kidnapping. The each face up to life in prison if convicted.
The teens' mother, Kathleen Blackwell, told investigators that she believed that Whitney was hoping to keep the money and had "little concern for her kidnapped brother and sister's safety."
Backwell faces up to 30 years in prison if she is convicted of conspiracy to sell cocaine. Meanwhile, Pernell also faces the same conspiracy charge, along with a burglary charge.
According to a federal complaint obtained by Michigan Live, Whitney Blackwell – an exotic dancer at Club Venus in Detroit – stole $120,000 in narcotic proceeds, cocaine and OxyContin pills from alleged drug dealer John Thomas, prompting him and five others to abduct Blackwell's underage siblings on Monday morning.
"He went and kidnapped my brother and sister because he couldn't find me," Blackwell, 27, told the Indianapolis Star in a jailhouse interview where she is being charged for drug dealing.
"If I would have just stayed, he would have just killed me and my kid and he wouldn't have hurt my brother and sister." Blackwell claims she only stole $46,000 in order to escape town with her boyfriend and child.
After armed invaders allegedly came looking for the stolen money in their Indianapolis home, Aaron, 16, and Emma, 13, were bound with zip-ties, blindfolded and taken to separate locations.
The kidnappers reportedly forced Aaron to call Blackwell's brother, Stanley Pernell, and demand "envelopes of money" to be delivered to a rendezvous location in Miami and, if he didn't comply, they would "chop the kids' fingers off."
Officers set up surveillance on Aaron's suspected location and found him in the luggage compartment of an SUV after a high-speed chase. Emma was transported to an Ohio Taco Bell by her kidnappers where she was given $200 and told to take a taxi home.
Officers also tracked Pernell to a home with large amounts of money stashed in several locations, including under a pile of trash in the basement. Police also found evidence of drugs and identification for Blackwell.
Thomas and the other suspects identified as Bernando Reeves, Ali Hussain Ashore, Mohammed Karkash, April Sandell, and Alaa Al-Salehi are being charged with conspiracy to commit kidnapping. The each face up to life in prison if convicted.
The teens' mother, Kathleen Blackwell, told investigators that she believed that Whitney was hoping to keep the money and had "little concern for her kidnapped brother and sister's safety."
Backwell faces up to 30 years in prison if she is convicted of conspiracy to sell cocaine. Meanwhile, Pernell also faces the same conspiracy charge, along with a burglary charge.