Police launch two separate kidnapping investigations after ‘distressed’ woman was tied up in a BMW in West Bromwich – and the ‘bare-chested’ man was seen driving the van shouting at the woman 20 miles away
- A woman is snatched from the road from a bus stop in Hill Top, West Bromwich
- The incident happened an hour after another report of a possible kidnapping in Coventry
- On Sunday, March 13, at 9.40 pm, a witness saw a woman in distress
- Gray BMW X5 . I was seen dragging
- In Coventry, a ‘bare-breasted man’ was seen yelling at a woman in a van
- Police do not believe the two possible kidnappings are linked despite being close
West Midlands Police have launched an investigation into two kidnappings following reports of a woman being dragged off the road and bundled into a BMW in West Bromwich, an hour after a witness found a ‘bare-chested’ man inside 20 Saw driving a van with a screaming woman. Miles away in Coventry.
The two incidents, which the police are treating as unrelated, took place on the evening of Sunday, March 13.
According to an eyewitness, a woman was seen waiting near a bus stop in Hill Top, West Bromwich, when a man approached her.
After exchanging words, he pulled her across the road and into a car believed to be a BMW X5.
An eyewitness reported the woman being in distress and screaming throughout the incident at around 9.40 pm on Sunday, March 13.
The police appealed for immediate information and expressed serious concern for the well being of the woman.
A ‘distressed and screaming’ woman is snatched from the street while waiting for a bus stop in Hill Top, West Bromwich, at 9.40 pm on Sunday, March 13. Image: Google Maps image of a bus stop at Hill Top in West Bromwich
West Midlands Police are investigating two separate incidents of kidnapping, a woman being snatched from the street and tied into a van in West Bromwich on Sunday 13 March and driven by a woman ‘bare-chested’ She was screaming in the van. The man’ 20 miles away in Coventry the same evening
They are investigating the incident as a possible kidnapping.
A West Midlands Police spokesman said: ‘We have issued an urgent appeal for witnesses after a woman was dragged into the streets and into a car in West Bromwich this evening, 13 March.
‘It happened at Hill Top around 9.40 pm.
‘It is understood that a woman was waiting at the bus stop when a man approached her who, after exchanging words, pulled her across the road and into a vehicle being driven by another man .
‘A witness described the woman in distress and screaming – and we have serious concerns for her well-being.
‘We have launched an investigation to identify and trace the woman and trace the men and the car involved.
‘The man who approached the woman is described as blonde, bald and in her 40s.
‘We believe the car was a gray BMW X5.
‘We are appealing to anyone in the area at the time and what may have happened – or any motorist with a dash-cam who caught the vehicle on video – to get in touch.
A woman was seen screaming inside a van driven by a ‘bare-chested man’ at the junction of Quinton Park and Blondeville Street in Chelesmore at 8.40 pm on Sunday.
Police do not believe there is a connection between the two possible kidnappings, despite the fact that the two took place 20 miles from each other on the same evening. Pictured: Blondesville Street, Coventry
‘Please call 999 and quote log 3602 from 13th March.’
In a separate incident, police are investigating a possible kidnapping in Coventry, when a woman was reported screaming from inside a white van as it was driven away by a bare-chested man.
It happened at 8.40 p.m. Sunday at the junction of Quinton Park and Blondeville Street in Chelesmore and officials are making local inquiries, as well as asking anyone they may have seen or heard something to call 999, 13 to log number 3459 Citing March.
A Coventry Police spokesman said: ‘We have been told that a man with a bare chest boarded a white van and a woman inside was screaming.
‘We are making local inquiries. It is not clear what happened and there may be an innocent explanation but our priority is to ensure that if any woman was in the van, she is safe and sound.
The appeal was posted on Coventry Police’s official Twitter account @CoventryPolice at 12.37am today.
The police is not looking at linking the two incidents together.