Police say the Philadelphia woman abducted from a Germantown, Pa., street Nov. 2 made smart decisions to lead the authorities to her, ABC News reports.
Carlesha Freeland-Gaither’s kidnapping was caught by nearby security cameras.
Her cellphone was found on the street near the scene of her abduction, and police think she discarded it deliberately to allow them to identify her. “We believe that … she left it there for us to find,” Philadelphia police Detective Jim Sloan said.
Another smart decision authorities say Freeland-Gaither made was giving her alleged abductor, Delvin Barnes, the personal identification number to her debit card. When Barnes used the card to withdraw money, the electronic trail created by the transaction helped police track Freeland-Gaither’s location.
She was rescued in Jessup, Md., 72 hours after her abduction.
Barnes, the man arrested in her kidnapping, has a history of violence against women, CNN reports. Barnes is being held on an outstanding warrant for attempted capital murder in a separate kidnapping case involving a 16-year-old girl, the network reports.
“He’s a vicious predator, he’s off the streets and hopefully he'll be in jail for the rest of his life,” Philadelphia police Commissioner Charles Ramsey told CNN. “That’s the only thing he deserves.”