A federal court charged a man with kidnapping after he allegedly forced Michael Bloomberg’s housekeeper to travel with him from Colorado to Wyoming.
Joseph Beecher, 48, broke into Bloomberg’s Colorado ranch Wednesday and abducted a housekeeper, identified as A.E., at gunpoint, according to a criminal complaint filed with the U.S. District Court for the District of Wyoming on Thursday.
“We’re deeply grateful to the Rio Blanco County Sheriff’s office, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Wyoming law enforcement, the FBI and other individuals for their swift and heroic action in this case in ensuring that no lives were lost and that the victim has been rescued and safely returned to her family,” Bloomberg’s spokesman Ty Trippet said in a statement.
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On Wednesday, A.E. was working at the ranch when an unknown man breached the premises and approached her with what she described as a black “machine gun” pointed at her face, the charging documents read. The man, later identified as Beecher, threatened to “shoot [her] f***ing face off” and told A.E. she was coming with him, officials said. A.E., in fear for her life, did as he demanded, the filing continued.
After Beecher commanded her to drive to Cheyenne, Wyoming, and rent a room, A.E. was forced to sleep in a bed with him before a SWAT team forced its entry into the hotel room due to exigent circumstances, according to the criminal complaint.
Beecher confessed to A.E. that he had committed a burglary in which he broke a window and got a cut on his left wrist, the charging documents added.
Officials asked the court to grant a search warrant in connection to the case.
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Bloomberg is a billionaire who previously served as the mayor of New York City and created the Bloomberg news outlet. He purchased the Colorado ranch in April 2020 for $44.8 million.
Beecher is being held in Cheyenne, Wyoming. The state has yet to file charges against him. If convicted of kidnapping, he could face life imprisonment or a fine of up to $250,000.
