CANYON LAKE, Texas – The Comal County Sheriff's Office arrested two men and three women in connection with a kidnapping where the victim was reportedly beaten, shocked with a stun gun and bound and gagged before escaping a Canyon Lake home.
According to arrest affidavits, on Dec. 9, the 39-year-old female victim was invited to the Canyon Lake home of 66-year-old Michael Edward Chapin to speak with 33-year-old Heather Lauren Richards, 26-year-old Sheena Nicole Hopkins and 17-year-old Kayla Lardieri about trouble between Richards and her boyfriend.
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The victim told police that soon after she arrived, the three female suspects assaulted her, including electrifying her with a stun gun and stabbing her several times.
After the beating, the women tied up the victim using handcuffs on her ankles and wrists before wrapping her in sheets. Chapin and 28-year-old Trace Rogers Smith allegedly carried the victim to a shed, locked her in and left.
Sometime later, the victim was able to free her hands and escape through a window in the shed before reaching help.
When detectives arrived, they found her naked and bleeding with handcuffs around her ankles.
Detectives followed a trail of blood from the victim to Chapin's home where a search warrant later uncovered blood inside the home and sheets, handcuffs, leg irons, electrical tape and a tennis ball in the shed that all appeared to be blood-stained.
The five suspects were arrested on Dec. 12 and face a charge of aggravated kidnapping.
The Comal County Sheriff's Office declined to comment, saying the investigation is ongoing. An update on the victim's condition was not provided.
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