A truck driver identified as Matthew Darnell was captured 14 hours after police released disturbing surveillance video footage of an attempted kidnapping of a bikini-clad, Beankini Espresso barista on Tuesday, January 17
The alleged victim in this kidnapping said she could not recognise her abductor. On Monday, January 16, at 5:06 am, nine seconds of CCTV footage from Auburn, Washington’s drive-thru Beankini Espresso, a female-owned coffee business where the baristas serve in lingerie and bikinis, captured a terrifying scene.
Truck driver Matthew Darnell tries to kidnap Seattle Beankini Espresso bikini clad barista, video goes viral
The culprit is shown on camera attempting to pull the unnamed barista out of the window with what seems to be a looped zip tie. After the victim successfully fought off the attacker, he got into his car and drove away.
The Seattle suburb police department released the video online in the hopes that someone would recognise the suspect and contact them. Less than 14 hours after the abduction attempt, a suspect, later identified as Matthew Darnell, was detained in his Auburn home.
Terrifying video shows a man trying to kidnap a bikini barista in Auburn, WA, right outside Seattle Monday morning.
Police said they arrested the man responsible. https://t.co/A4pTueRERm pic.twitter.com/OkvEJZVepc
— Dakarai Turner (@Dakarai_Turner) January 18, 2023
The barista, who has worked at the drive-through coffee shop for the past nine years, said that trucker Darnell, who was driving a Chevrolet Silverado, randomly picked on her on Wednesday. After hearing of Darnell’s arrest, the victim, who also asked to remain anonymous, told media, that the incident was “totally random.”
She claimed the incident left her shaken but was appreciative that the female-owned firm she works for opens at 4.30 in the morning with a silent panic button, metal doors, and surveillance cameras for the safety of its employees. According to the victim, staff workers are also allowed to carry tasers and mace for the same reason.
Who is Matthew Darnell? Charged of attempted abduction!
Once investigators got a good look at the person they were seeking for in the little video, they were able to narrow their search to Darnell and bring him in. A man pulls up to the window to pay and get his change. And as he does so, we see that he has a tattoo reading “Chevrolet” on his arm.
And look at these comments blaming the barista and not Matthew Darnell. pic.twitter.com/zsPFWSJbE2
— AskAubry 🦝 (@ask_aubry) January 18, 2023
The man was seen with a coiled zip tie in one hand. And a visible tattoo on his forearm as he grabbed the victim’s arm and tried to pull her out the window. The barista, though, put up a fight and, thank goodness, freed herself. Currency notes worth one dollar that the worker had been handed him fell on the ground as the man was hurriedly escorted out.
Barista released statement over the incident
The barista stated that the attempted kidnapper Matthew Darnell ordered a drink on Monday morning, paid for it with a five dollar bill, and then asked for change. It is said that he grabbed the victim as she turned to give him the five dollar bills. Neither she nor any of her employees had ever seen him, she told the media.
Workers at the coffee shop later positively identified Darnell, and on Tuesday he was apprehended by police in Auburn, Alabama. At Darnell’s initial court appearance, the judge concluded there was sufficient evidence to imprison the suspect. On one felony count of attempted second-degree kidnapping, Darnell has been arrested and booked into the King County Correctional Facility pending trial. Where his bail has been set at $500,000.
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