Police Standoff Ends With Man Accused Of Kidnapping His Elderly Mother In Custody
BELLFLOWER (CBSLA) — A Thursday night standoff in Bellflower ended early Friday morning.
The incident was reported in the 15300 block of Bellflower around 7:30 p.m. when police got reports of a possibly missing person located at the residence.
The standoff ended just after 2 a.m. when the suspect, 52-year-old Roger Hillygus, was taken into custody. Neither the suspect nor the victim, 80-year-old Susan Hillygus, were injured.
#LASD @SEBLASD took suspect in custody. Neither the suspect or the victim was injured. #Barricaded
— LA County Sheriffs (@LASDHQ) August 16, 2019
According to police in Reno, the woman was removed from a senior care facility on Aug. 8 by her adult son. The woman was said to suffer from severe dementia and was not communicative. Police said she was in need of professional care that her son could not provide.
Police said the son had no right to move the woman out of the facility. After leaving the facility, the suspect reportedly called to say he would not be bringing her back.
Authorities said the suspect abducted his mother with the help of 59-year-old Stewart Handte, a former sheriff of Mineral County in Nevada.
Handte is accused of going into the care facility with Hillygus and providing them with false information. Handte was arrested Wednesday.
The motive for the abduction is still unclear.