Six-year-old Luis Velasquez knew he should try to get out after a trio of kidnappers duct-taped the boy's hands and legs and left him in a car at a desolate Salt Lake parking lot.

At first he tried to open the door. When that failed, he struggled to roll the window down a little at a time. Finally, after he had spent more than seven hours inside the car, a woman noticed his small hands reaching out of the window.Minutes later, the boy was reunited with his family and police had three men in custody. West Valley police officers arrested the trio Thursday afternoon and booked them into the Salt Lake County Jail for investigation of kidnapping.

It was the end of an ordeal that began as Luis and his 11-year-old sister, Mirella Velasquez, walked their usual route to West Valley City's Pioneer Elementary School, 3860 S. 3380 West, shortly after 7 a.m. Thursday.

School administrators Thursday sent home a note to parents about the abduction and notified children of the incident, partly to quell rumors circulating through the school amid a massive police and FBI presence, said principal Jane Lindsay.

Friday morning, dozens of parents, in efforts to prevent a similar abduction, stood outside to watch as children walked to school.

Thursday night, Luis' sister recounted details of the abduction. "We were talking when a gray car passed us and turned around," Mirella told the Deseret News. "It stopped, and one guy got out, took my brother, and I started screaming for help."

Mirella noticed at least three men inside the car whom she had never seen. When the car sped away, she ran to a nearby friend's house to call police.

Luis said the men duct-taped his wrists and ankles, blindfolded him and drove a "long way."

"They told me to shut up and they would give me candy," Luis said. He said he told them, "I don't want any candy from strangers."

When they reached a parking lot near 500 South and Redwood Road, the men transferred the boy to a deserted car and left him inside. After the men left, Luis was able to pull the blindfold down and begin his escape.

"I tried to open the door," he said, demonstrating how he tried to accomplish the task with his tightly taped hands. Then "I just opened the window."

Police began to track the kidnappers after one man called the family at 8:23 a.m. demanding $50,000 in ransom. Officials don't know how the kidnappers obtained the boy's home phone number. West Valley Police detective Kevin Nudd said the parents, Luis and his Mirella deny having ever seen the men before.

Yet, when the men called the parents shortly after the boy was abducted, they used the father's first name, Jose, even though he is known by his middle name, Javier, Nudd said.

West Valley Police Chief Dennis Nordfelt said because the men called so quickly, it indicated to him the family was a target.

"The reason why the family was picked out is not clear," said FBI special agent Tom Kubic. He said the children's father owns a West Salt Lake auto repair shop.

Luis said the kidnappers did not ask him for his phone number. "I didn't told them nothing," he said.

The family received a second call at 1:45 p.m. The kidnappers wanted to know if the money had been gathered and was ready for delivery, said FBI supervising agent Jim Logan. Police traced both calls to pay phones in the Glendale area.

About 3:30 p.m., Collette Benjamin and her husband, Oliveros Rodriguez, arrived at the same parking lot where Luis was being held captive. They went there to recover a car they had sold to a man who never paid them, Benjamin said.

The couple noticed the boy.

"He was looking straight at us. His hands were out of the vehicle, not all the way out. But from the distance we were, you could not tell if he was tied up," Benjamin said.

Just before they left, the couple approached the boy and realized his predicament.

"It was a shock, and my heart just dropped to the floor," said Benjamin, who is the mother of a 7-year-old boy. "I questioned him what had happened, and he said it was robbers that did that to him. He didn't know where he was or anything."

But Luis did know his phone number. So after removing the duct tape and taking him to her apartment, Benjamin called his father.

Benjamin was preparing Luis some lunch when police arrived, and the boy returned to his family unharmed. Thursday night, he seemed enthusiastic to talk about the episode.

His father seemed weary but told reporters he was grateful for the outcome.

"The parents held up very well throughout the day," Nordfelt said. It wasn't until they knew their child was safe that "they gave way to the emotion that they had felt all day long."

Benjamin met Luis' family later that night. "They're really appreciative. The mother was just silent but in tears, as well as I was."

Just as authorities prepared for a press conference about the happy reunion, police received a third call from the kidnappers at 4:50 p.m.

"It was clear to us the suspects did not know the child had been recovered," Kubic said.

Shortly after the call, the men returned to the lot where Luis had been left. One approached the deserted car. But when he realized the boy was not there anymore, he returned to his vehicle and "fled at a high rate of speed."

It was a short run, however. Nearby police stopped the vehicle and arrested the three men, all illegal immigrants. About 20 FBI agents and 20 West Valley police officers were involved in the operation, Nordfelt said.

Later that evening, Luis and his sister looked at a police lineup and identified three people.

Children at Pioneer Elementary received a crash course on stranger safety at the beginning of a Thursday afternoon ecology assembly, Lindsay said. But first, they were told of the abduction.

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"They were really solemn," Lindsay said of the students. "I think they were scared."

Lindsay offered tips on handling aggressive strangers, including kicking and screaming to draw attention. Kids then offered examples of how they could react, an activity that seemed to calm their fears.

Friday morning, to the cheers of students, Lindsay announced Luis was safe at home. The boy was expected to return to school by afternoon. Next week, the school will honor the brother and sister as heroes.

Rogelio Alvarez, 20; Joel Vasquez-Gomez, 20; and Angel Popoca-Maura, 26; were booked into the Salt Lake County Jail Thursday for investigation of child kidnapping.

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