State and federal investigators are trying to come up with leads in a case in which three men and a women apparently bungled an extortion plot in Pocatello.
Pocatello police on Monday found a 1984 vehicle stolen from one of the eight people held hostage in an empty Pocatello building Friday.Police said the four suspects lured people to the vacant building on the pretext of soliciting bids for a building renovation. One of the hostages, identified by police on Monday as Ray Rosen, owner of Ray's Custom Interiors Upholstery and Draperies, foiled the plot.
Police said Rosen and one of the suspects went in Rosen's vehicle to a downtown bank to withdraw money, but Rosen deliberately crashed the vehicle into a construction pit.
He jumped out and ran into First Interstate Bank and alerted police. Officers said the suspect escaped and apparently alerted the others.
All had fled by the time police arrived at the vacant building, but they took bank credit cards, wallets and jewelry from the victims, who were unharmed.
Pocatello police identified the victims as Rosen and his wife, Deanna, who was captured when she went to check on her husband's whereabouts.
The others were Arnold Seeley, president of the Eastern Idaho Agricultural Credit Association; Stan Hales, an employee of Associated Business Products; David Waite, Gem Typewriter Agency; Werner Rosenbaum, Realtor with C. Forsman Realty World; Bardell Tate, electrical contractor and Kevin Ekstrom, office supplies. All are Pocatello residents except Seeley of Blackfoot and Ekstrom, Lava Hot Springs.
Four FBI agents and four investigators and a fingerprint expert from the Idaho Bureau of Identification searched for clues.
"We're re-interviewing the hostages as needed. We're checking with rental car agencies and airports and canvassing motels and hotels," said Police Capt. Kirk Nelson.
Officers said a man who used the name Jerry Timberman set up the appointments. Rosenbaum, whose realty company is selling the building involved, arrived at 7:30 a.m. and opened the building. The others arrived at half-hour intervals.
All were threatened with either sawed-off shotguns or a handgun. Six of the eight were stripped of clothing and bound with tape in the building's basement. Seeley had a makeshift noose of cable tied to his neck, looped over a pipe.
Seeley was back to work in Blackfoot Monday, but told a reporter he didn't want to talk about the incident.