How Michael Bloomberg s Housekeeper Survived Being Kidnapped

It's your first look inside the ranch where Michael Bloomberg's housekeeper was kidnapped. The former presidential candidate and New York City mayor ranks 10th on the list of wealthiest Americans. He bought the sprawling 4,600-acre Colorado estate for $45 million in 2020. It was here, authorities say, that the accused kidnapper, identified as Joseph Beecher, rammed the gate in his pickup. Beecher was reportedly looking for Bloomberg's two daughters, Emma and Georgina. But when he was told they weren't there, he allegedly pointed a black machine gun at the housekeeper's face and ordered her into her own truck. What followed was a terrifying 350-mile abduction, driving first to Denver and then across state lines to Cheyenne, Wyoming, according to authorities. Cops say at one point they stopped at a bank where he forced the housekeeper to withdraw hundreds of dollars from an ATM machine, staying remarkably cool during her ordeal. She managed to look into the surveillance camera and mouth the words, help me. Twelve hours after the abduction, authorities say they tracked the kidnapper to this Cheyenne motel by using the Find My iPad app on the housekeeper's iPhone, which had been left behind at the Bloomberg ranch. An FBI SWAT team stormed the room and rescued the housekeeper. He made her sleep in the bed with him, with her head on his chest, her arm around his middle, and her leg over his, court documents say. Hostage experts praised the housekeeper for doing everything right to save herself by winning the confidence of the suspect. What specifically did she do right to stay alive? She did a number of things, following directions, being calm, not doing anything sporadic, not doing anything to upset him or make him angry. It was brilliant what she did in terms of saying help to the ATM camera, mouthing help. That was very well done. Michael Bloomberg says in a statement, we're deeply grateful to law enforcement for their swift and heroic action in this case in ensuring that no lives were lost and that the victim has been rescued and safely returned to her family. Authorities say they know of no connection between the suspect and the Bloomberg family.