FL FL - Attempted abduction in Tallahassee, 20 May 1992

I am the victim of an attempted abduction on 5/20/92 at appx. 7:20 a.m. in Tallahassee, FL. My assailant had a MO license plate that began with a J. This attempt on my life changed the world I knew forever more. In short, I am trying to research, on my own, my unsolved case, in an attempt to finally find some closure on my prior life. I need this so very much. Miraculously, my evidence (clothes, jewelry) are finally with FDLE for DNA processing even though the statute of limitations has expired on proscecuting my assailant.

I was told and have always felt based upon the m.o. with which my assailant set my crime scene up, that he was an experienced criminal.

All I am looking for is closure. My investigators throughout the years have tried to comfort me by saying that he is either dead or in jail somewhere. This is not enough for me. I can go into more detail if you want me to, but my total existence was altered in a 5 minute assault on 5/20/92.

Is there anything any of you can do to advise me as to my research in finding my assailant.

(P.s. After the assualt and to this day, my parents watch AMW every Sat night. In Jan. 94, my folks were lying in bed watching the story of the two women who were attacked and left for dead in the MO mountains on a nature hike and when the tv displayed their composite sketch they both sat up in bed b/c their assailant very much so matched my composite drawing. It was even more poignant that this assault happened in MO where my assailant's tags were from).

I would totally appreciate any and every piece of information you can give me in every regard.

Please feel free to email me at tracy62401@hotmail.com

Sincerely,

Tracy

Tracy...I'm so sorry for what you went thru! If you would like to post all info you have along with description, things the assailant may have said, car description, exactly what happened, etc...I know the people on this board would help you research plus give you great ideas on how to go about searching. There are some incredible sleuths on this site and as I said, I'm sure all of us would be glad to help you..

Thank you for your reply Jashrema and I am very excited to post as much relevant information in my case as I can. Feel free to follow up with any questions they may produce.

At appx. 7 a.m. on a sunny morning on my way to work, I stopped by the Albertson's right beside my workplace for a birthday card and some saline solution.

I drove down the front of the store to the parking aisle that was right in front of the store and turned in to park. I parked 5 spaces from the first parking space on that row, pulling into the space facing the normal direction in parking.

I got out and as I was walking up the parking aisle, a man in late 80's-early 90's Oldsmobile Cutlass, Buick Regal looking car drove past me. I remember this only because my husband at the time was into old cars and keeping our cars nice and clean and I remember thinking it was a nice car and he should clean it up.

Went into the store and was in there maybe 15 minutes and as I was walking back to my car, I noticed that this same exact car was parked right beside me. However, he had backed his car in and he was sitting in the car looking at me (his drivers door was beside my driver's door). My intuition went off a little bit. Enough that without really thinking, I stalled going to my driver's door by putting my small bag into my hatchback.

As I approached my driver's door, I looked down at him, his window was down and he was looking up at me. I'll never forget his face. His eyes were very bloodshot and the blue looked like it was glowing. I've never seen such anger in a person's eyes. Anyway, unlocked my door and had enough time to put my butt in the driver's seat when my assailant pulled the latch on his trunk from the inside of his car, swung his door open while my door was still open (creating a tunnel from his car to my car) and jumped on top of me, throwing me into my passenger seat. Somehow, he wrestled me out of the car and got me in a bear hug from behind and took me back to his trunk. He had my arms and hands bound with his arms and was stuffing me into his trunk from my hips up. One of my saving grace's that morning was the fact that I had heels on and was locking my legs and digging my heels into the asphalt to keep from going all the way in. Another saving grace was that he made the mistake of not taking me all the way behind his car, where his trunk entry was lower to the ground. He was trying to abduct me from the side of his trunk and I was able to use the side of his car as leverage as well in the fight. My left elbow was battered up from hitting the trunk brackets every time my upper body went into the trunk. The final saving grace was a man in the store apparently saw what was happening and ran to his trunk and got his knife and ran at my assailant and chunked the knife at him yelling to let me go. I did not know about this part until later that day though. All I know is I was fighting for my life and all of a sudden, he threw me onto the ground, jumped into his car, and peeled out of the parking lot and into 8 a.m. traffic with his trunk lid still open. He had Missouri plates and I'm pretty sure the reports say it started with a "J".

Investigators believe he was experienced based upon the way he set up my crime scene. They called him a Class 4 Serial Rapist/Murderer and said he wanted me in the trunk b/c he didn't want to see me or talk to me until he was ready for his intended purpose for me. They believe he probably came in to Talla off of I-10 that morning (which wasnt far from the attack) and was planning on getting back on I-10 after he got his girl.

Funny thing is, when he fled the parking lot, he fled into town and not out of town, towards I-10. I don't know if he was confused or not. The police put out BOLOs and began gathering all of the evidence.

At the ER, they took all of my clothing as well as fingerprinting the car and processing the crime scene. they picked up several beads that came off my broken necklace for evidence as well.

As of about 1 month ago, at my initiation, all of my clothing and the beads were finally sent to FDLE for DNA processing, hopefully the new touch DNA processing and I should know sometime in the next couple of months if they were able to get DNA off of my clothes or not and if there is a match in the national dna database. I'm not too hopeful though b/c nothing has ever worked out in solving who did this to me.

I need some peace and closure on this attack on me and that is exactly why I am trying to do some research by looking for similar crimes in both FL and MO between 1992 and 1994. I am sure I could learn ALOT from you sleuthers and would greatly appreciate any advice or help you might be able to give me. I am happy to talk on the phone or communicate with you however you so desire.

Also, please read my first post b/c in a related matter, I am trying to find out more about the attack on the two women in Branson, MO on the nature hike as my parents said their assailants composite drawing greatly resembled mine. I will get another copy of my composite drawing and see if I can post it here somehow. If not, I can surely fax it to whomever wants a copy of it.

I am so thankful to have found this website and feel more hopeful now than ever before. There is an explanation here that I won't get into right now but I do not feel my investigators did as much homework as they should have in my case b/c I find abductions and rapes around the same time as mine all over FL and MO, including one that was successful earlier in 1992 in an ALBERTSONs parking lot in Bradenton, FL!!

Thank you for anything and everything.

tracy62401

the only thing I remember him saying was "get in the trunk, get in the trunk"

tracy62401,

Thank you for posting more about what you're looking for. The sketch could be helpful (to compare to other sketches that may be "out there" of other sketches of abductors).

I am so sorry that you had this experience. I will spend some time looking around the web and see if I can find any cases that sound similar to yours and I'll post any links (if I find them) for you.

:blowkiss:

That sounds so scary!!!!
OMG i'm so sorry you had to go through that.
I'm so glad you fought so hard and got free.
There are so many good sleuthers on this site....i hope you can get some answers soon.
How old were you when this happened?
I'm sorry if i missed that part.

I was 27 years old and planning a 10 year wedding anniversary later in the year. That anniversary never happened partly b/c my husband was not there for me in recovering from this near death experience. He and many around me could not understand why I just couldn't get over it.

Tracy, I'm so sorry you had to go through this. It is unimaginable. Will you please list a physical description of the man?

Hugs, Tracy, that has to be a girl's worst nightmare! Good for you for fighting him off and surviving, even if some of those around you weren't very understanding. And thank God for the witness and his bravery! Do you know who he is, and can you contact him for his eyewitness account (which I'm sure he gave to police). Actually, do you have a copy of the police files?

If you can, could you post the details of the MO case as well? Maybe there's a link to the case on AMW? It might help to find out more there.

I hope we can help in some small way to solve this for you. Regardless, I hope you are moving forward and don't let this shadow the rest of your life (although I know it's nothing that can be "gotten over"). Again, hugs to you.

ETA: are there any newspaper articles from the time? They probably can't help any more than your own words, but you never know....

Tracy, so sorry you had to experience this.. and good for you for trying to deal with it! This may be a dumb question, but, did you ever seek counseling? It's pretty typical (unfortunately) that most people are not going to be understanding of something traumatic unless they went through such a thing themselves. You definitely had a near-death experience.. and it seems clear to me you have been suffering from PTSD for a long time. Obviously you are very lucky to have survived.. (and that other man who helped save your life was a real hero!)... but I agree, this is not something that a person just 'gets over'. Maybe in the future you can become involved in some activity.. like volunteering to help empower women in some way.. (or becoming addicted to Websleuths,, LOL) that can be therapeutic for you and can help you overcome it, or at least feel 'on top of it',, once & for all. I hope that you'll get some good information on here... Best of luck to you.

Ok, trying to answer my own questions here, but I checked on AMW's website and there is only one case listed from 1993-94 - I guess the internet was still in its infancy and no one thought to save much? I also found this link on IMDB:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1125197/plotsummary

which says :

Plot Summary for
"America's Most Wanted" Episode dated 31 August 1993 (1993)

Two women travel to Branson, MO to see Reba McEntire in concert. While hiking in the mountains, both girls are brutally attacked and left for dead. They both survive and one year later, return to Branson for the filming of the re-enactment. Documentary crew follows the girls and their families retracing all of their steps up to the exact spot of the attack. Both pieces are included in the episode and it airs as the season premiere on August 31, 1993. Written by Chris Malmin

Click to expand...

(the guy who wrote this, Chris Malmin, acted as the abductor in the re-creation, and he looks pretty scary)

I know this is from 1993, but maybe your parents were watching a rerun in Jan 1994? If this is the wrong case, let me know and I'll keep searching.

Was it the albertsons on Monroe?

Tracy,

Sorry to hear of this horrible incident that happened to you. How smart you were in fighting back the way that you did. I pray for your full recovery and comfort.

Tracy...can you please post a description of assailant? A composite would be great, but we need at least a description until we get a sketch...thanks..

Tracy, welcome.

I would like to know what age category, what you looked like and how you were dressed that day that could have set you apart from anyone else being scanned by the perpetrator.

Figuring out a possible pattern as far as the choosing of victims would be useful if possible. Thank you for your help.

Possibly just a woman alone shopping early in the morning, at a time when not a lot of people shop and people are busily trying to get to work (and so not paying a lot of attention to what's going on around them) might be enough for a perp to target a woman.

I looked on doenetwork and found a lot women missing from that time period in Florida and other nearby states. I wonder if the perp was involved with any of these?

Hmmm..I thought I posted this, but now i don't see it anywhere!!

Tracy, could you also tell us who LE has RULED OUT as suspects? Particularly any serial killers that were in the area, that would save time..

I wonder where Kenneth mcDuff was during tis time. I know he was arrested in late 1992 I think, and he does have ties to Missouri since he once lived and worked there. Sounds like his MO also, the just "grabbing" off the streets..

You've already done more than TPD ever did for me. I'm going to try to catch up on my answers in this one reply.

INDIANAGIRL:
Physical description of my assailant:
5'7 - 5'10 feet tall
white man
white t shirt and jeans
blond hair kind of wavy with a high forehead; hair went to middle of his neck
vivid blue eyes
roundish face
peach fuzz blonde moustache
he looked "corn fed" if you know what I mean---he looked like a burly construction worker type----his face was flushed red like he was hot---eyes were almost glowing blue they were so blue and his eyes were clearly very bloodshot.
he probably weighed 180-220 lbs

PUDD:
I don't have a copy of the case file b/c it is still open. They won't let me see what is in it unless it is closed and it can't be closed until after the DNA is done processing.

I have looked and looked for the re-enactment video that the two victims actually participated in themselves from the MO abduction. It was featured on AMW but the website does not have that video out there, presumably b/c the internet was just starting up way back then? Your post later on to this thread is the case I am looking for. My parents hair stood up at the sight of the composite drawing those girls did rather than the actor. I am dying to see this composite drawing and find out if their guy was ever caught! I think the two girls might have even gone on Oprah later to tell their tale as well.

CINDI LOU: Yes, Albertsons on N Monroe

FUKIYAMA: Thank you for asking about my physical appearance. I was 27 years old; blond permed hair that went to the middle of my upper back; I was and am 5'2" and weighed 111 lbs and was very fit. I had heels on that day and a cream business suit with a burgandy blouse. There was hardly anyone in the parking lot when I got there and investigators wondered for a time if he might have followed me into the parking lot or if he was just there staking it out for the next blonde to come along for his taking. I believe he was parked in his car at the entrance to the parking lot watching people drive in and I probably drove right past him. I say this b/c when he drove past me as I was going into the store, he came from the direction in which I entered the parking lot. (My hair was not a curly as "Angela Hammond" whom I have been reading about b/c of the Missouri ties and her size..)

Mr. E: So it seems there were alot of abductions in Florida and Missouri between 1992 and 1994....one of which happened in Jan 92, in an ALBERTSONS parking lot in Bradenton....an investigator with Manatee Co Sheriff is looking through their archives for me on this one....I joined newslibrary.com and am amazed at the # of abductions in the papers during this time......just another revelation into the fact that my investigator was more interested in me personally than in solving my case (a whole other story).

JASHREMA: The only person I know for sure my investigators ruled out is Bobby Wayne Woods from Granbury TX but I am not sure at all whether he should be viably ruled out b/c although my Investigator checked him out b/c he had ties to FL he said BWW could not be my perp b/c he was in jail in Tampa the day of my assault. However, I can not find any record of BWW anywhere in the Florida Department of Corrections Offenders (past) database!!! This again, a whole other story. I actually drove to Granbury and did a photographic lineup and picked BWW out of the lineup. I had seen his picture on the front page of the Dallas M News and FREAKED OUT b/c his mug shot looks exactly like my guy. I'm still looking further into this and have been in contact with the DA in hood tx and trying to get with the P.I. on that case.

I am trying to scan both my composite drawing and anything else relevant this afternoon as well...

Again, thank you ALL for your help and interest in helping me close this awful chapter in my life! I feel so much better talking to you!!

Sincerely,
Tracy

This is interesting
http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...ZgTAAAAIBAJ&sjid=e-oDAAAAIBAJ&pg=1372,5866238

This guy killed himself though 3 days before your attempted abduction. He had abducted a woman from a shoping plaza in Tallahassee in 1984. There was also atleast 2 abduction/murders at Tallahassee Mall on Monroe. I used to live on John Knox when I went to college at TCC in 1983-84. I know the area well.


Thing that struck me with this article is the tag, in his letter to LE he stated that the tag was a stolen Utah tag. Your perp may never have stepped foot in Missouri, he may have lifted the tag off a car, possilby even at the mall down the road or another car at Albertsons.

Edit, something else that caught my eye on this news article is his letter where he says that there is no way they can prove it was him. What if it wasnt him? There have been cases of people who are mentally ill taking the blame for crimes that they did not commit. The abduction at a shopping plaza could have been him and then again it might not have been. Curious now what his letter to LE said. I wonder if it was different then the one he sent to the Arizona Sun.

How old was your attacker aproximately?

Wonder what happened to this guy?
http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...MQMAAAAIBAJ&sjid=E2EDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6920,5369912

seem's like he could try it again.