Kidnapping victim escapes from car's trunk

NEWPORT — In a made-for-television moment, a kidnapped man forced into the trunk of a car in Montana freed himself on a Pend Oreille County highway early Sunday, leading to two arrests.

Kenny J. Morrison, 29, and John M. Davis, 39, both of Columbia Falls, Mont., were arrested on charges of kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment, assault in the fourth degree, possession of methadone without a prescription and unlawful possession of a firearm.

The victim, who was only identified as a Washington man by police, refused medical attention while on scene but was later taken to Crime Victim Services for assistance, said Pend Oreille County Sheriff Alan Botzheim.

The escape was witnessed with amazement by a motorist and his wife, whose vehicle was behind the car.

At about 7:10 a.m., the motorist reported that while driving on Highway 2 near Pend Oreille County Park he and his wife saw the trunk of the vehicle  in front of them pop open and a man begin waving his arms and yelling for help. The car quickly came to a stop and the man jumped out of the trunk and ran towards the witness’s vehicle, the man told police.

“Statistically speaking, bad things usually happen when someone is put into a trunk. Usually it results in the recovery of a body,” Botzheim said. He added that the “unbelievable” events “sounded like something out of a movie.”

Botzheim said an attempt was made to force the victim back into the trunk after he freed himself and the car came to a stop.

The witnesses, whose names were not released by law enforcement, said the victim told them he had been beaten, bound and forced into the trunk of the suspects’ car while in Montana. Subsequent investigation revealed injuries to the victim consistent with being bound and beaten, Botzheim said.

“It had to be a scary situation for the witnesses, who really are true heroes,” Botzheim said. “To stop and have the guts to help in that type of situation says a lot.”

A short time after the escape, Botzheim said deputies observed the suspects’ vehicle traveling toward Newport. When briefly failing to stop, one of the suspects threw a firearm from the vehicle, which was later recovered.

Botzheim said he didn’t want to speculate on exactly how long the victim had been confined to the car’s trunk but believed the time period to be at least four hours, or the amount of drive time from the area in Montana to Washington.

“Very, very seldom do you ever see a case like this,” said Botzheim.

He said most kidnapping cases “occur between parent and child” and that no such crimes have been reported in Pend Oreille County this year.

The investigation is ongoing and Pend Oreille County Deputies continue to work closely with Montana authorities on the case. Kalispel Tribal Police also responded to the call.