⏱ 2 min read
Joseph Charles Henrichsen, 49, and Phoenix Henrichsen, 23, kidnapped two US Forest Service employees at gunpoint in California’s Shasta-Trinity National Forest, near Gumboot Lake Campground in a remote area of Siskiyou County. The employees were abducted while conducting field work, bound, and taken to a trailer where they were held for 15 hours. The motive behind the kidnapping is not clear.
The kidnappers used one of the victim’s phones to call and claim they had taken two federal employees hostage, threatening to harm them if anyone interfered. This prompted a large-scale law enforcement response involving local, state, and federal resources, including the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team.
After a 15-hour standoff, negotiators from the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team secured the release of both victims and the surrender of the suspects. Joseph Charles Henrichsen and Phoenix Henrichsen are now in custody, facing charges of kidnapping federal employees. If convicted, they face a maximum penalty of life in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI, with assistance from the US Forest Service, Homeland Security Investigations, the Bureau of Land Management, the Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Office, the Shasta County Sheriff’s Office, the Mt. Shasta Police Department, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the California Highway Patrol. Assistant US Attorney Charles Campbell is prosecuting the case.
📋 Key Facts
- Crime: Violent Crime
- Defendant: California
- Location: CA
- Source: DOJ Press Release
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