Man accused of kidnapping, after witnesses say woman pleaded for help in minimart parking lot

South Salt Lake police arrested a man accused of kidnapping, after witnesses saw someone carrying a petite woman away and putting her into an SUV — an incident that prompted an early morning Amber alert, because police at first thought the woman was a teen girl.

Police found the man, 22, and the woman, 35, in a 1990 Nissan Pathfinder in West Valley City on Saturday morning, said Danielle Croyle, spokeswoman for the South Salt Lake police.

Police say a red 1990 Nissan Pathfinder drove into the parking lot of the Miniature Market, at 310 E. 3300 South, at 10:28 p.m. Friday night. According to police, surveillance footage shows the driver, a man, walked to the store, while the woman got out of the vehicle, ran to another customer at the minimart, and then appeared to hide or try to get away by going underneath the vehicle.

Witnesses, Croyle said, told police that they heard the woman say “help, please help me,” repeatedly.

According to police, the surveillance video showed the man ran after her, grabbed her from under the vehicle, and carried her over his shoulder, while she thrashed and kicked trying to break free. The man then put the woman in the Pathfinder and drove away.

Croyle said Saturday afternoon that the woman was 35 years old, and the alleged kidnapping is being investigated as a case of domestic violence.

The woman was petite, Croyle said — about 5-foot-1 and weighing less than 100 pounds. Because of that, and the size 3 shoe police found in the minimart parking lot, Croyle said police initially believed the woman was a teen girl. That’s why they sent the Amber alert, which went out at 8:24 a.m. Saturday, triggering cellphone alarms all around the Salt Lake Valley.

“She did look like she was a juvenile,” Croyle said.

The Amber alert prompted several tips from the community, Croyle said, including from the woman’s relatives. Detectives also checked the “hot sheet” of recently reported car thefts, and found the Pathfinder on that list, Croyle said.

The Salt Lake Tribune generally does not identify suspects before they have been charged.