Looking for tips, detectives release footage of Modesto mother’s alleged kidnapping
The Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Office on Thursday released surveillance video footage of the moments detectives allege Modesto mom Susana Torres was kidnapped at gunpoint by her estranged husband.
The video appears to show 41-year-old Javier Chavez closely following Torres, 32, as she gets into the driver’s seat of a light-colored sedan just after 5:30 p.m. April 11 outside Richy’s Mini Mart on Butte Avenue. Time stamps on the footage do not match the actual time the alleged kidnapping occurred, the sheriff’s office said.
Detectives have said Chavez kidnapped Torres at gunpoint. He appears in the video to be holding an object toward her as they walk to the car.
In part of the footage not included, Chavez forces Torres into the passenger seat before driving away, the sheriff’s office said.
Torres’ two children were also with her when the alleged kidnapping occurred, the sheriff’s office and Torres’ family have previously said, but they are not visible in the video. The children were dropped off at Chavez’s parents house around 10 p.m. the night of the alleged kidnapping.
Detectives believe Chavez then fled to Mexico.
On the Thursday before the alleged kidnapping, Torres was granted a restraining order against Chavez that temporarily gave her full custody of her children. Chavez is the father of the younger child.
The sheriff’s office is looking to speak with anyone who may have been at Richy’s Mini Mart between 5:35 and 5:50 p.m. April 11. Witnesses can call Detective Summerton at 209-525-7032 or, for Spanish, Detective Esquivez at 209-652-1792.
This story was originally published April 22, 2021 at 12:02 PM.
