After four days in the hands of tough young kidnappers, two Mormon missionaries walked back into the Russian city of Saratov Sunday morning looking a bit tired but apparently in good spirits and health.
Mission companions Andrew Lee Propst, 20, Lebanon, Ore., and Travis Robert Tuttle, 20, Gilbert, Ariz., were released sometime around 4:30 a.m. Russian time and immediately contacted police and representatives of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints."The missionaries are tired, happy and grateful to be free," said Elder Wayne M. Hancock of the church's Europe East Area Presidency, who has been the church's on-site representative throughout the ordeal.
"We're very happy and very appreciative of all the prayers," Tuttle's mother, Donna, said from her home in Gilbert.
She said she hadn't yet spoken to her son and knew very little beyond the information released by U.S. and Russian authorities. She said the family was expecting a call from Travis Sunday afternoon.
The two missionaries were abducted Wednesday outside a private residence in Saratov, a city 500 miles southeast of Moscow. The following morning, a note demanding $300,000 in ransom for their release was found on the doorstep of another church member's home in Saratov.
Lee Propst told reporters in Oregon that his son and Tuttle were hit on the head with some type of weapon as they arrived at the residence. While captive, they were kept handcuffed but were otherwise not mistreated, Propst said.
Official word of their release came from U.S. Ambassador to Russia James Collins in a 6:30 a.m. phone call to Sen. Bob Bennett, R-Utah.
Bennett, who was at home in Salt Lake City at the time, said the ambassador had personally spoken with Propst, who said they had been "roughed up" but were otherwise OK and "in good spirits."
Rep. Merrill Cook, R-Utah, said State Department officials told his office that "while the boys aren't in exactly perfect condition, there are no serious injuries." However, he added that one of the missionaries may have suffered a broken finger.
While information about the abduction and release were still sketchy, Bennett said it appeared that the two missionaries had been moved from place to place during their four days in captivity and then taken out to the countryside outside of Saratov and "dumped."
Bennett said he was told that no ransom was paid, though from all indications, the kidnappers were motivated by money rather than any animosity toward the LDS Church.
"I asked (the U.S. ambassador) if there was any evidence of any kind of a plot or concerted effort to attack the church, and he said it appeared that the main motivation was ransom," Bennett said.
Not much was known Sunday about the kidnappers other than that they were believed to be young men in their 20s. Authorities said no one had been arrested in connection with the crime.
Bennett said, "This is very much a guess on my part, but based on what little I know, this was probably entirely a freelance effort by fairly inexperienced people who decided they had gotten in over their heads."
The kidnapping drew intense interest and concern from the White House and powerful members of Congress as well as the international media, which brought extreme pressure to bear on Russian authorities.
Cook said the incident drew LDS members of Congress together. For example, Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., sponsored letters of concern from LDS members of Congress to President Clinton and Russian President Boris Yeltsin.
It's possible that the international political pressure in turn was applied locally in Saratov in such a way as to force the kidnappers to release the missionaries without ransom, Bennett said.
"Our information is very preliminary at this point, and we really don't know what drove them," Bennett said. "What we do know is that full efforts were expended at every level."
LDS Church officials, who maintained a cautious silence during the four days that the missionaries were missing, on Sunday welcomed the news with an expression of relief and gratitude.
"We are all rejoicing that the missionaries are safe," the First Presidency said in a statement Sunday from church headquarters in Salt Lake City.
Also, the church leaders said they appreciated the efforts of law enforcement and the government officials in both Russia and the United States.
Bennett said Russian authorities were very cooperative throughout the incident.
Born in Boise, Propst is the youngest of five children. Since moving with his family to Lebanon, Ore., in 1989, he has been active in Scouting and held leadership positions in his high school.
Tuttle also excelled in high school activities and athletics, particularly tennis. Friends say he is always relaxed and has a good sense of humor.