VIDEO: Would-Be Kidnappers Tour Torture Chamber
(CBS) – Federal prosecutors unveiled chilling video in the trial of former Chicago cop Steve Mandell.
Mandell is accused of plotting to kidnap Riverside businessman Steve Campbell so that he could torture him into turning over cash and real estate.
The feds offered a look inside that so-called torture chamber in surveillance video. We listen to the frustrated suspect, inspecting the facility like it's a new home that needs some renovation.
He talks about installing anchors to hold his victim in place.
The door outside the chamber -- in the 5300 block of West Devon Avenue -- looked innocent enough. But inside, prosecutors say, recordings reveal a sinister plan between Mandell and his alleged accomplice Gary Engel.
The feds also charge Mandell plotted to kill the owner of the Polekatz strip club. The defendant maintains he would never have followed through on the murder plots.