SPRINGFIELD, Vt. — Six people are being held in connection with the kidnapping of a 35-year-old woman out of Claremont who police say was bound and tortured and held for ransom for weeks.
Police rescued the woman last month when they tracked a phone captors used to contact the victim’s ex-boyfriend and son to a house on Randall Hill Road in Springfield, Vt., according to a police affidavit in the case.
The woman told police she had been accused of stealing $8,000 worth of narcotics from the alleged perpetrators, based on court documents. All six people charged in the case remain in custody, Windsor County State’s Attorney Ward Goodenough said Friday.
The victim told police the ordeal began when she was at a friend’s house in Claremont on the evening of Jan. 1, according to the police affidavit. The woman made arrangements with Claremont resident Nicole Palardy, 36, to purchase cocaine, and left on foot to meet with her.
When she approached Palardy, two men — Damarcus Bonner, 30, and Tyron Harris, 26 — allegedly forced her into an black truck being operated by Jesse Emerson, 46, of Bellows Falls, Vt.
The victim was transported to a Springfield residence located at 950 Randall Hill Road, where a female later identified as Jessenialyz Jones, 18, allegedly bound her feet and hands with duck tape, according to the affidavit. The victim told police that Jones also struck her face and body.
The woman also told police Harris and Bonner took her phone to contact people via Facebook messenger to demand ransom money.
During the weeks she was held captive, the victim sustained burns to her abdomen and back from a heated up knife, was waterboarded with hydrogen peroxide and had handguns pointed at her numerous times, according to the affidavit.
At some point, the victim said, a second woman was restrained and assaulted as well. The perpetrators believed that one of the two had stolen $8,000 worth of narcotics, she told police.
Authorities became aware of the situation on Jan. 24 when the victim’s ex-boyfriend contacted police in Greenfield, Mass., to report that she had been kidnapped and was being held for ransom, based on Facebook messages he received.
Drug dealers were demanding $4,000 on her behalf according to the ex-boyfriend, who reported receiving images of the victim bound by duct tape with burn marks to her abdomen, the affidavit said. He was able to identify her based on a birthmark, tattoo and piercing. He also reported seeing a silver handgun while the suspects were video calling him, said the affidavit.
After receiving the ex-boyfriend’s tip, Greenfield police pinged an unrecognized phone number used to contact the victim’s ex-boyfriend and son, which brought Springfield police to the Randall Hill Road residence, where Sheldon Stocker, 37, and the second victim were listed as tenants.
On Jan 24. — about three weeks after the woman is alleged to have been taken — police descended on the location, and using a loudspeaker, ordered all occupants out of the residence.
Palardy emerged first, and indicated that more people, including the victim, were inside. Vermont State Police were then summoned. While police escorted the victim out of the residence, she informed them that she had been kidnapped from Claremont.
“There were fresh wounds corroborating the alleged assault present on (the victim’s) face, along with ligature marks, duct tape marks on her wrists and ankles,” said the affidavit signed by Springfield Police Sgt. Philip Perkins.
Bonner, Harris and Jones also emerged from the residence, the affidavit said. In their search of the house, police found duct tape that appeared to have been used to restrain someone, drug paraphernalia, a large knife, a torch, hydrogen peroxide and firearms.
Officers also seized 4.11 grams of suspected heroin/fentanyl, 71.2 grams of a purple substance consistent with fentanyl and suspected cocaine scattered throughout the residence.
Claremont police interviewed the second alleged victim, who was a resident of the Randall Hill home. She told police that the primary victim would frequent her residence, where Bonner and Harris allegedly sold narcotics. At one point, she said, $8,000 worth of those narcotics went missing and the primary victim was suspected. A plan was concocted to kidnap the primary victim until they received the narcotics or payment for them, the second woman told police. At some point during her captivity, the primary victim convinced the alleged perpetrators that this second victim may have taken the drugs, so they restrained her as well.
However, they ultimately decided the second victim was likely not responsible and let her go, according to the affidavit.
Emerson, the alleged driver the night of the kidnapping, was arrested Feb. 5 on charges of accessory to kidnapping — bodily injury or fear of bodily injury. Emerson has pleaded not guilty, with bail set for $75,000.
Palardy was arrested on Jan. 25. She pleaded not guilty to two felony kidnapping charges, one for ransom and one for accessory to bodily injury or fear of bodily injury. Her bail is set for $100,000.
Stocker also faces two felony kidnapping charges, one for bodily injury and fear, and one for ransom. He pleaded not guilty and is currently held without bail.
Bonner, of Connecticut, faced eight total felony charges, including four kidnapping charges, two extortion charges, one aggravated assault charge and one heroin trafficking charge. He was also charged with a misdemeanor of possessing a firearm despite being prohibited to do so. Bonner pleaded not guilty to all charges, and has yet to retain an attorney.
Harris, of Massachusetts, faced seven total felony charges, including four for kidnapping, two for extortion and one for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. He pleaded not guilty to all charges, and has yet to retain an attorney.
Jones, also of Massachusetts, faced six charges, including four kidnapping charges and two aggravated assault charges. She pleaded not guilty to all charges, and retained public defender Kelly Green as her attorney.
Green did not respond by deadline to a comment request. Jones has a status conference for her kidnapping and aggravated assault charges on March 9 at the Windsor Family/Criminal Courtroom.
The six are being held in different jails across Vermont, Springfield Police Chief Jeff Burnham said on Monday.