On October 29^th, a Massachusetts women, AR, was arraigned for the charges against her. She faced allegations of kidnapping another women, MC, that past July, and holding her for eight days in an apartment until a ransom of $60,000 was paid by the alleged drug dealing friends of MC. MC was seven months pregnant at the time and claims that she was released without the money being paid due to health concerns. Another suspect, HV, was also taken into custody back in August after police believed that he was a part of the kidnapping. The alleged kidnappers and the victim were friends prior to the incident and MC claims that she waited so long to report the kidnapping because she thought that the situation blow over.

AR went before the court on Tuesday for the first time since being accused as an accomplice in the crime. Kidnapping is a first degree crime with potential penalties of 10 to 20 years in a state prison. With the assistance of an interpreter, AR answered questions that were asked of her and pleaded not guilty to the charges she is faced with. She is being represented by Attorney Benjamin G. Kelsen from our firm and we have confidence that we will be able to argue a compelling case before the court. Attorney Kelsen stated outside of the court that MC was not being held against her will but was staying in the apartment for that week. She was free to leave anytime she wanted, and she actually did come and go during her time there. If you have been charged with a crime, seeking criminal defense should be done immediately. Contact our Bergen County criminal defense lawyer today or fill out a case evaluation form on our website.