A Texas couple was kidnapped at gunpoint by two suspects who broke into their home and “forcibly” herded them into a white van in front of their five young children.
The parents, identified by friends as Samantha Esquivel-Zúñiga, 38, and Ricky Zúñiga, 37, were ambushed at their home in Mission Bell on Wednesday morning, the Daily Mail reported.
“The suspects kicked down the door, entered the house, took the two adults and fled the scene,” San Antonio police officer Ricardo Guzmán told ABC 13.
Police said they arrived at the residence after a call around 6 a.m. and found the couple’s children, all under the age of 17, unharmed.
“We located five minors inside the house. There were no injuries, they were unharmed,” Guzmán said.
The children told police their parents were kidnapped by unknown suspects who loaded the couple into a white van before driving off, police told KENS 5.
No motive for the kidnapping has been revealed.
As authorities searched for the parents, friends and family members took to social media to express their hope that they would return safely.
The kidnapped couple were identified online as Samantha Esquivel-Zúñiga, 38, and Ricky Zúñiga, 37.Mujer Fiera / Facebook
San Antonio police said they received a call about the kidnapping around 6 a.m. Wednesday. KSAT 12 / Youtube
“Please everyone in the name of Jesus Christ we need prayers for my family/best friends Ricky and Samantha Zúñiga! We all need you to come home safely! Ida DeLeon wrote on Facebook.
“This morning it was so hard to believe that this had actually happened! My heart broke for you and the children! Please, Lord, bring them home safe and sound, especially for their children.”
John Garcia Jr. also pleaded with his Facebook followers: “Man, if anyone knows ANYTHING, LEAVE US [KNOW]There is no rest until these two, Ricky and Samantha Esquivel-Zuniga return home.
Authorities say they were kidnapped in front of their five young children.Mujer Fiera / Facebook
“God, I have come to you less than a handful of times in my life for something that I truly loved or needed, but this here, PLEASE IN THE NAME OF YOUR SON JESUS, take care of my brother and sister and just bring them home. ”.
He later wrote: “I [know] His whole story doesn’t end like this, there’s no fucking way! So I’m patiently waiting for that phone call.”
“We have no idea where they were taken, and the police and FBI are investigating,” a woman calling herself Fierce Woman, identifying herself as Samantha’s cousin, wrote on Facebook.
It is not clear what happened to the children after the kidnapping. Fiera Woman / Facebook
“When I was a little girl, she was my neighbor and the person who nicknamed me ‘Honey,’” Fiera said.
“I was part of the team that welcomed her home when she was a baby and my goal was to be part of her care team.
“Since then she has grown into a fierce young woman who has raised her five children and her little sister.
“She is an incredible survivor and I pray she can come home safely to her babies very soon.”
San Antonio police said the kidnapping appears to be an “isolated” incident, although the motive remains unclear. KSAT 12 / Youtube
San Antonio police are asking residents to turn over any surveillance video that could reveal more about the kidnappers and where they fled.
“Detectives are currently investigating this incident as a kidnapping and the investigation is ongoing,” Guzman told the San Antonio Express-News.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn