Did They Catch the Kidnapper in the Chowchilla Kidnapping Case Where 27 People Survived?: All three of them were caught and punished. On July 15 1976 something bad happened in Chowchilla California. Three men took a school bus and kidnapped the driver and 26 children. The people who kidnapped the children were rich and had been planning the kidnapping for a long time. They wanted to get $5 million as a ransom.
The kidnappers took the victims to a big hole in the ground in Livermore California. They made the kids and the driver go down a hole that had air going through it. Then the kidnappers put a heavy metal cover over the hole trapping them inside.
Luckily after being trapped for over 16 hours the victims managed to escape by digging their way out of the bunker using only their hands.
Did They Catch the Kidnappers in the Chowchilla Kidnapping Case?
After the Chowchilla kidnapping case, the police caught all three kidnappers: Richard Schoenfeld James Schoenfeld, and Fred Woods. The kidnappers were charged with many counts of kidnapping. During the trial, the three people who did the kidnapping said they only wanted money and didn’t want to harm anyone. But the court decided they were guilty and sentenced them to life in prison.
In 1976 Frederick Newhall Woods IV were one of the kidnappers who took 26 children and their bus driver. He was 24 years old at the time. Recently he asked to be released from prison many times but his requests were always denied. Finally in August 2022 when he was 70 years old, he was granted full parole.
James Schoenfeld and Richard Schoenfeld two of the kidnappers were released from prison in 2015 and 2012 respectively after serving several years for their crimes. James was 63 years old when he was released and Richard was 57 years old.
The Chowchilla kidnapping case was a very bad and scary thing that happened a long time ago in America. Even though the bad guys who did it went to jail for many years people still remember how scary it was for the kids who were kidnapped.
Did Everyone Survive in the Chowchilla Kidnapping Case with 26 Children and a Bus Driver?
Yes, all 27 people who were kidnapped in the Chowchilla kidnapping case survived. There were 26 children aged five to fourteen and their bus driver Ed Ray who were taken.
The kidnappers forced the 26 kids and their bus driver into two vehicles and took them to a secret underground place at a quarry in Livermore California. The kidnappers locked the victims including the children and their driver in an underground ventilation shaft with a thick metal cap where they were trapped for over 16 hours.
Even though they were in a very dangerous situation the victims didn’t panic. They worked together to use their bare hands to dig a hole and escape from the bunker. It took a while but they kept trying until they were finally able to climb out of the hole and get help.