MENIFEE, CA — Felony charges are expected to be filed Tuesday against a 44-year-old woman suspected of abducting an acquaintance in Winchester while threatening the victim with a weapon.
Olga Almendra Mendez of Menifee was held in lieu of $100,000 bail. Her case remained under review by the Riverside County District Attorney's Office. She was arrested and booked last week into the Smith Correctional Facility in Banning on suspicion of kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon, making terrorist threats, presenting false identification, and forgery.
According to sheriff's Sgt. Bradley Talbott, just before 10 a.m. on Dec. 18, patrol deputies were called to a residence in the area of Leon Road and Olive Avenue to investigate reports of a domestic altercation, but instead discovered that a "kidnapping and assault ... had occurred."
The alleged victim, who identified herself on social media as Erin Quinn, claimed that Mendez lured her to the location by offering to donate presents for a toy drive Quinn was attending.
Quinn said on her Facebook pagethat she drove to a location given by Mendez, who used a false name, and left her vehicle unattended for an undetermined amount of time to search for her.
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"Little did I know, it was a set up and when I went back to my car, someone was in the back seat waiting for me with a taser," Quinn wrote on Dec. 19. "While the suspect was pulling my hair and repeatedly tazing me for over 30 times over 25 minutes. She made me drive while this was going on, threatening my boys and my mom would be next."
Quinn said she told authorities that she recognized the suspect as her former house cleaner after she crashed her vehicle to escape the incident.
"My brain was jolting and my body was shutting down," Quinn told KTLA5. "I thought literally either I was going to die or I was going to pass out."
Quinn posted about the case again on Friday.
"You have no idea what a relief this is that she was found. Thank you for helping me get this story out there. Our community is safe again, knowing that she's behind bars," Quinn said on Facebook.
Mendez was soon identified as the alleged assailant, and detectives initiated a search, but were unsuccessful in locating her for more than a week, until confirming she was in Los Angeles County, according to the sheriff's spokesman.
The suspect was taken into custody without incident in Paramount on Friday.
A possible motive behind the alleged abduction was not provided, nor was background information on Mendez available.
Anyone with relevant information was urged to contact Deputy E. Lopez at the Perris sheriff's station at 951-210-1000.