This is one I remember from my youth. Thought I’d revisit it and see if it was actually true. Turns out it is. The police in Flagstaff, Arizona were alerted to an active kidnapping during the filming of Midnight Run in December 1987.
Thirty-seven years ago, local Arizona authorities apprehended two suspects in a small corner shopping centre. Four unsuspecting farmworkers said they had been held at gun and knife point, then told to drive their van to Nevada. While passing through Flagstaff, the kidnappers had the driver stop at the Longs Drug Store on Riordan Ranch Road.
When the van doors opened, two of the captives bolted and ran away. The escaped duo hid behind the strip mall and were able to call the police. The kidnappers continued their journey with the remaining two hostages. The victims said they were from Chandler, Arizona and were working on the land when two men forced them into the van.
The Van took a right turn on Santa Fe Ave and came face to face with what looked like 20 police cars blocking the highway. The driver slowed in disbelief and soon they found themselves surrounded by, what they thought were, dozens of cops.
It was actually about 50 extras from the Midnight Run film set dressed in costume uniforms and FBI attire. The crew were just wrapping up a scene in the Flagstaff Train Station. The road was blocked with prop police cars and a makeshift pedestrian crossing for the film’s staffers. Despite its appearance the roadblock was not a police barricade awaiting the arrival of would-be kidnappers.
Thinking the elaborate sting was designed to catch them, the panicked criminals forced the driver to abruptly change directions. The van raced away from the scene and towards the open parking area of the Eastside Shopping Center.
Once there were no obstructions, the driver slammed on the breaks and the two suspects abandoned the van. They and took off on foot while the two remaining victims sat patiently in the vehicle wondering what was going to happen next.
The legitimate police, working the film set, arrived almost immediately and grabbed the two Hispanic victims out of the van. Police took no chances and slapped hand cuffs on the pair as it was unclear who was who. Assuming the victims were the culprits, police detained them on the near freezing ground until an interpreter arrived.
The victims were swiftly released once the two suspects popped up at the Villa Bonita Restaurant asking for help. The suspects were Antonio Ruiz (31), from Tennessee, and his underage accomplice from Mexico City. Both were booked for unlawful use of a vehicle, but it does not look like either were convicted.
The relationship between the victims and perps was never fully explained by either party. The whole story stunk to the police and authorities didn’t seem to take any of it seriously. One of the attending cops says he gave the unlucky victims $20 worth of fuel money to get back to Chandler, Arizona. Neither the victims nor the kidnappers were injured.
I still have an occasional chuckle thinking about the moment these guys saw the herd of cops coming towards them. Whether it was a real kidnapping, or just another caper gone wrong; the entire affair is now Flagstaff folklore with Hollywood claiming the collar.
Midnight Run (starring Robert De Niro and Charles Grodin) went on to make about 85 million dollars and was a darn good film. It’s a story of a fugitive hunter traveling across the states with his awkward bounty, trying to avoid the mob, police and FBI.
If only the kidnappers had stumbled on the set of A Fish Called Wanda…
This one was crazy....nice read!!