The abduction
The abduction of a seven-year-old girl in Zimmerman yesterday afternoon began what the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension’s Superintendent Drew Evans described as “a family’s worst nightmare.” It ended in the best possible way about nine hours later and 135 miles away, when Albert Lea police stopped and arrested the suspect as he drove with the girl south on Interstate 35.
The abduction occurred after the girl got off her school bus in Zimmerman about 4:00 p.m., though no one observed the abduction. There was some confusion between family members about where the girl was supposed to be, but by 6:30 p.m., the family contacted Sherburne County law enforcement to report her missing.
The investigation
Some 200-law enforcement and fire personnel, and an estimated 700 citizen volunteers began mobilizing to conduct a search and begin an investigation. The law enforcement investigation led them to identify a suspect, Joseph Bragg, 28, with no permanent address, who had made contact with the family via social media.
At 11:40 p.m., investigators had enough information to activate the Amber Alert system, sending information out to the public statewide.
At 12:38 a.m., investigators using “technology” identified a white Dodge pickup that Bragg was believed to be using and learned of his general location and direction of travel. Investigators put out an emergency alert to law enforcement in Freeborn County.
A successful recovery
At 1:04 a.m., Bragg and the victim were stopped southbound on I-35 near Albert Lea. The victim was reunited with family, and Bragg has been arrested and will likely be charged tomorrow in Sherburne County with Kidnapping.
A win for law enforcement
The response and outcome in this case were outstanding. Fortunately, most missing children turn out to be miscommunication between parents and a child, or maybe a runaway situation. Stranger abductions are relatively rare, and when they occur, they can be extremely difficult to solve successfully. The first hours of an abduction are the most important, and the more time that goes by the more unlikely the child will be found unharmed.
Law enforcement officials reminded parents of the importance of monitoring social media activity by their children, and to repeatedly teach children to never go with anyone the parent has not authorized the child to go with.
By all accounts, law enforcement in Sherburne and Freeborn Counties and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) are to be commended for their prompt, professional, and ultimately successful resolution in this case.
The outcome was undoubtedly joyous news for the family involved, but also joyous for Minnesotans eager for some positive public safety news.
Well done, Minnesota law enforcement!