The infamous Chowchilla kidnapping, which occurred on July 15, 1976, took place in Chowchilla, California. The abductees reportedly included a school bus driver along with 26 children. All children were aged between 5 to 14.
As per reports, the abductors were Frederick Newhall Woods IV, James Schoenfeld, and Richard Schoenfeld. While Frederick and James were 24 at the time, Richard was 22. The trio kept the children in a box truck and were going to demand a ransom. This box truck was located under a quarry in Livermore, California.
However, 16 hours after being held captive underground, all of the 27 abductees managed to escape by digging themselves out. There were no casualties all of them survived. Following the incident, the court sentenced the kidnappers to life imprisonment with the possibility of parole. Richard and James were reportedly paroled in 2012 and 2015, while Frederick was paroled in 2022.
CNN Films and Max collaborated to create a project titled Chowchilla. This intriguing crime documentary will premiere on Sunday, December 3 at 9 pm ET/PT on CNN.
Who were the victims of the Chowchilla Kidnapping?
According to Sportskeeda, here is the entire list of the Chowchilla Kidnapping victims.
- Frank Edward “Ed” Ray (the driver)
- Lisa Ardery
- Monica Ardery
- Jennifer Brown
- Jeff Brown
- Lisa Barletta
- Julie Carrejo
- Irene Carrejo
- Lynda Carrejo
- Stella Carrejo
- Darla Daniels
- Johnny Estabrook
- Andres Gonzales
- Robert Gonzales
- Jodi Heffington
- Sheryll Hinesley
- Mike Marshall
- Jody Matheny
- Andrea Park
- Larry Park
- Barbara Parker
- Judy Reynolds
- Rebecca Reynolds
- Angela Robison
- Michelle Robison
- Cindy Vanhoff
- Laura Yazzi
What did the victims of the Chowchilla Kidnapping say about the incident?
According to CBS News, some of the survivors of the Chowchilla Kidnapping were interviewed by 48 Hours, where they got candid about the entire tragedy. One of the victims, Jodi Heffington, said that since the incident, she has struggled to find mental peace.
Heffington shared, “How that day affected me, has affected me every day in some way or another.…I think it made me not a good daughter, not a good sister, not a good aunt and especially not a good mother. And probably not a good friend.…I try to be those things, but it seems like it, um, it just took something from me that I can’t ever get back. And I can’t tear it down — no matter how hard I try and no matter what I do.”
Jodi passed away in January 2021. At the time of her death, she was 51 years old.
Another survivor, Larry Park said, “I was too scared to move. Twenty-six terrified children – some as young as 5 – were staring down the barrel of a sawed-off shotgun. Three masked men had hijacked the Dairyland Elementary school bus. One had the shotgun, one drove the bus, and one followed behind in the white van they’d used to block the road.”
Larry Park further stated that he had forgiven his kidnappers, sharing, “My resentment for them…was killing me.…One night…I was laying in bed…and I said, ‘God help me to forgive them.'”
