10 Most Notorious Kidnappings in American History
Ariel Castro Kidnappings
The horrifying crimes of Ariel Castro rocked Cleveland, Ohio and the rest of America when they came to light. Castro had orchestrated the kidnappings of Michelle Knight, Amanda Berry, and Georgina DeJesus between 2002 and 2004. For about a decade, the three ladies remained locked up in Castro’s home, where they lived under terrible conditions. In that time, the case became national news, even getting featured on “America’s Most Wanted.” It remained unsolved until 2013 when Berry escaped from the house with her daughter and was able to lead police back there. Castro was arrested and sentenced to life imprisonment, but he took his own life one month later.
1976 Chowchilla Kidnapping
It was the largest kidnapping for ransom in American history. On July 15th 1976, twenty-six schoolchildren from Chowchilla, California were abducted alongside their bus driver Frank Edward Ray. The perpetrators drove them out to a quarry where they were held in a truck buried underground. By this time, the kids’ parents had inundated the police with so many calls that the lines were jammed and the kidnappers were unable to phone in with their ransom. Over the next sixteen hours, Ray and the older children maneuvered their way out of the truck to their freedom. They were eventually reunited with their families. All three kidnappers were captured by police and sentenced to life, but were eventually all paroled.
Charley Ross
In 1874, the young Charley Ross was living with his family in an affluent neighborhood in Philadelphia. On July 1st, Charley and his brother, Walter, were in front of their house when they were picked up by two men who lured them with the promise of candy and fireworks. Walter was later dropped off by the men while Charley was never seen or heard from again. The kidnappers demanded a $20,000 ransom, which Charley’s father was unable to pay. The case eventually became headline news, as it was America’s first-known kidnapping for ransom. Sixty years later, a man named Gustave Blair came forward claiming to be Charley, but he was never accepted by the Ross family.
Bobby Dunbar
Born to Lessie and Percy Dunbar, Bobby Dunbar was a four-year-old boy who went missing in 1912 while on a Louisiana fishing trip with his family. For eight months, police searched all over the country and the case attracted significant media attention. It all took a bizarre turn when it was reported that Dunbar had been found with a man named William Walters in Mississippi. But according to Walters, the boy with him was actually Bruce Anderson, the son of Julia Anderson, a field hand of the Walters family. Notwithstanding, a court ruled that the boy belonged to the Dunbars, and Walters was later sent to prison for kidnapping him. Decades later, DNA testing proved that the boy was, in fact, not Bobby Dunbar.
Elizabeth Smart
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On June 5th 2002, a young Elizabeth Smart was kidnapped from her home in the middle of the night by Brian David Mitchell. Mitchell took Smart to a camp in the woods where he and his wife, Wanda Barzee, kept her imprisoned for nine months. Smart’s name and face were plastered all over the news, and at one time, about 2,000 volunteers searched for her every day. After a drawing of Mitchell appeared on TV, he was eventually spotted and reported to police. Smart was rescued and reunited with her family on March 12th 2003. Since then, she has played an instrumental role in the passing of legislation to promote child safety.
Amber Hagerman
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The 1996 kidnapping and subsequent death of Arlington, Texas girl Amber Hagerman remains one of the most notable unsolved cases in the state. On the 13th of January that year, Hagerman was abducted from the parking lot of an abandoned grocery store by an unknown man in a black truck. A witnessing neighbor quickly drew the attention of the police, media and Hagerman’s parents, all of whom began searching for the young girl. Sadly, her lifeless body was found four days later in a nearby creek. The case led directly to the development of a nationwide system that can quickly alert people if an abduction occurs. It’s called America's Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response, or the Amber alert.
Frank Sinatra Jr.
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Frank Sinatra Jr., the son of the legendary singer and actor, was just starting his own music career when he was kidnapped on December 8th 1963. That night, two men named Barry Keenan and Joe Amsler abducted Sinatra Jr. from his dressing room at Harrah’s Lake Tahoe hotel in Nevada. John Irwin, a third conspirator, placed a call to Sinatra Sr. and demanded a $240,000 ransom. The famed entertainer actually offered him a million, but Irwin declined and stuck to his demands. Sinatra Jr. was released after the ransom was paid but his kidnappers barely had time to spend their ill-gotten wealth. They were soon captured by authorities and given lengthy prison sentences, although they all secured early releases.
John Paul Getty III
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The kidnaping of John Paul Getty III made international headlines because the then-sixteen-year-old was no average teenager. In fact, he was the grandson of J. Paul Getty who, at one time, was the world’s richest private citizen. Getty III was abducted off the famous Piazza Farnese in Rome by the ‘Ndrangheta, an Italian crime syndicate. His kidnappers demanded a $17 million ransom for his release. While the kidnapping itself became news, what actually made this case a media sensation was the senior Getty’s adamant refusal to pay the ransom. After four months in captivity, Getty III’s ear was mailed to a newspaper organization. This prompted his billionaire grandfather to cough up $2.2 million, the most he could deduct from his taxes.
Patty Hearst
Born into the affluent Hearst publishing family, Patty Hearst was a nineteen-year-old college sophomore when she was kidnapped from her apartment in February 1974. The perpetrators were a far-left radical group called the Symbionese Liberation Army. Two months later, the group released a tape in which Hearst called herself “Tania,” and declared that she had joined their ranks. That same month, she was captured on surveillance footage participating in a bank robbery. After being an accomplice in other crimes, Hearst was apprehended in San Francisco, alongside another member of the SLA. Despite claiming to have been brainwashed by the group, Hearst was sentenced to seven years in prison. She was eventually pardoned by former President Bill Clinton.
Charles Lindbergh Jr.
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Widely regarded as the “Crime of the Century,” the little Charles Lindbergh Jr. was abducted from his parents’ home on March 1st 1932. A ransom note demanding $50,000 was found that night. In the next few days, the child’s parents, famed aviators Charles and Anne Morrow Lindbergh, received more ransom letters which increased the demand to $70,000. Eventually, the Lindberghs were able to pay the ransom, but their son never returned home. His body was found in a shallow grave on May 12th 1932. A rigorous investigation led police to Bruno Richard Hauptmann, who was arrested and charged with kidnap and murder. The ensuing trial took the media by storm and ended in Hauptmann being sentenced to death.
