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Man Found In Basement Of Bronx Deli Tells Police He Was Kidnapped For 3 Days
By
Jen Chung
Published Sep 12, 2019
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By
Jen Chung
Published Sep 12, 2019
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A police pursuit resulted in finding an apparent kidnapping victim in the basement of a Bronx deli early on Wednesday.
The deli's owner was arrested, and police are looking for another store employee as well as two other people.
Around 2 a.m., authorities say that police officers chased two people—allegedly suspects in a reckless endangerment case who had been smoking pot—into a deli at 1724 Bussing Avenue in Wakefield. While searching the store, a store employee let them into the basement, where, the NYPD says, "they discovered a 49 year old male who stated he had been held against his will for the past three days."
According to the NYPD, the man told police he had been held against his will for three days, claiming that on September 7th, at about 8:30 p.m. and near East 234th Street and White Plains Road, he was approached by four people who "grabbed him and placed him into a dark colored sedan." The kidnappers, the man said, took him to the deli's basement, where they bound him and beat him on the head and torso.
The victim refused medical attention at the scene. Police told WCBS 2 that the victim "has a long criminal record and has been arrested for 'everything'."
Orinthia Gifford, the store's 49-year-old owner, was arrested for assault, kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment, criminal possession of a weapon, menacing, and harassment.
Police are also seeking store employee Richard Millwood, 35. The authorities do not have photos or video of two other male individuals who are being sought.
When police were in the deli, Millwood, the Daily News reports, allegedly "had just untied [the victim]... and told him to keep his mouth shut and tell the cops nothing," but the victim spoke anyway.
Gifford's daughter told the Post she was shocked about her mother's arrest: “I know she got caught up with something to do with some fugitives. They chased them in here and I guess since she’s the owner, they took her in."
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Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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