MERIDEN–Police are on the hunt for two suspects after a strange incident led to an abduction on Thursday morning.
Around 7:52 a.m. a Meriden Police detective sergeant was driving to work on Nancy Lane, near North Colony Road, when he saw two black men exit an SUV with what appeared to be police-style lights activated. The men had “pulled over” another vehicle.
The men approached the “pulled over” car, forcibly removed a woman from the driver’s seat, put her in the back seat of her car and drove off. The SUV they had arrived in followed behind the victim’s car.
The Meriden detective sergeant called dispatch, but the cars drove off at high rates of speed, and by the time backup arrived the victim’s car was gone.
That woman has been identified as Chastity Marquez, 26, of Naugatuck. She was charged with kidnapping in the first degree, conspiracy to commit kidnapping in the first degree, carjacking, conspiracy to commit carjacking and impersonating a police officer. Bail was set at $250,000.
While all officers worked to find the victim’s vehicle, which they believed the victim to be inside, a call was made to the police station reporting that a woman was on the ground crying and upset about a mile or two from the abduction location. When officers arrived they confirmed that she was the victim.
The victim was shaken, but not hurt. She told police that one of the two suspects who had abducted her had a handgun, which is how he forcibly removed her from her car.
Nearby towns were alerted of the search for the victim’s vehicle, which the suspects had driven off in. It was found a short time later by Cheshire Police in a commuter parking lot, but was empty.
Cheshire Police utilized a K9 unit to search the nearby woods and try to track the suspects, but no evidence was found. The car has been impounded as part of the investigation.
Police say this is not a random act of violence, and seems to have been motivated by a robbery. However, that is not yet certain and police are investigating.
Stay with FOX 61 as the story develops.
