BSO: Suspected Kidnapper Targeted Woman Arriving For Work
Follow CBSMIAMI.COM: Facebook | Twitter
Pompano beach (CBSMiami) – A woman arriving for work at a Pompano Beach industrial park on Saturday morning was on her way inside when a man approached her.
The Broward Sheriff's Office says Julio Acevedo told her there was something wrong with her vehicle.
"She didn't get have a good feeling about and she said, 'Don't worry about it,' and he insisted," explained BSO Spokesperson Gina Carter.
Then, investigators tell us Acevedo showed her a gun and forced the woman back into her car and took her to a nearby ATM.
"He actually had her go into her banking app on her phone so he could see how much money she had in her account," Carter said. "She had a couple of hundred dollars he and he took all of the money."
The arrest report says Acevedo threatened her and said, "Don't do anything stupid I know where you live, I know your child, and I will kill your family."
Carter said the threat was real.
"He actually took something from her car that had her address on it so this was a very legitimate threat," she said.
That's one of the reasons prosecutors made this request when Acevedo appeared in court Monday: "The only other thing we request is an order of no victim contact, judge."
The judge granted the request.
BSO says Acevedo left the scene on his bicycle. A nearby business recorded this surveillance video from a distance that appears to show a person riding a bicycle away from the woman's office building around the time of the crime. Deputies caught Acevedo a short time later.
Michael Bernard is a vice president at a business in the industrial park. He said another woman was attacked just a few doors away last week and there have been attempted break-ins of cars.
"Anytime there's something like that going on, people get scared and nervous," Bernard said.
The company where the woman in Acevedo's case works says there was no security in the park until they hired some on Monday. Bernard hopes to see more.
"Better security, 100 percent," Bernard said.
Acevedo is being held without bond. Jail records show he was already on probation for another case when he was arrested over the weekend.