An armed man stormed former NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg's Colorado ranch and abducted his housekeeper because he wanted 'make an international scene' with the billionaire or his daughters. The man was identified as 48-year-old Joseph Beecher.
Beecher allegedly crashed his truck through the $45 million ranch's gate and kidnapped housekeeper Amanda Edinger at gunpoint on Wednesday. According to court documents, he made her drive him through metro Denver and into Wyoming in her vehicle, after attempting to hide his truck in an embankment.
Edinger claimed that he forced her to withdraw money from an ATM and made 'many threatening statements.' Cops found Beecher along with his hostage Edinger at a Cheyenne motel on Thursday. Beecher was said to be armed with an AR-15 and a handgun.
The kidnapper kissed the hostage on forehead
According to court documents, Beecher told Edinger he had gone to the local airport during the summer to look for Bloomberg. He also allegedly enquired the housekeeper about the whereabouts of Emma and Georgina, Bloomberg's daughters. An arrest affidavit noted that Edinger told the police that Beecher kissed her on the forehead and told her he would've killed her had she been a man.
The kidnapper had no connection with the Bloomberg family
Police noted that Beecher had no connection whatsoever with the Bloomberg family or the housekeeper. He lived about 70 miles from the Bloomberg home, worked as a handyman in exchange for accommodation but was fired just a day before the kidnapping.
Beecher was jailed in Wyoming. He is facing federal kidnapping charges. Bloomberg's spokesman Ty Trippet expressed gratitude to the Rio Blanco County Sheriff's office, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Wyoming law enforcement, the FBI, and other individuals for their 'swift and heroic action' making sure that 'no lives were lost and that the victim has been rescued and safely returned to her family.'
An exact cause behind the suspect's actions is not known at the moment.
