BALTIMORE — Cal Ripken Jr. say that while his mother is doing “pretty well,” she still hasn’t been able to return home after being kidnapped at gunpoint last month.
“She’s not back in her home yet, so I guess that gives you some indication of how she’s feeling,” Ripken said today on“Good Morning America”. “Her sense of security is violated.”
“She’s a tough woman, but it’s a very traumatic ordeal,” he said.
Last month, Vi Ripken told a neighbor that the man who kidnapped her at gunpoint, tied her up and blindfolded her didn’t seem to know she was part of a famous baseball family as the two drove around together in her car.
The gunman, who has not been found, forced 74-year-old Vi Ripken into her silver Lincoln Continental and she was found bound but unharmed in the back seat about 24 hours later near her home in Aberdeen outside Baltimore, police said.
She described her abductor as a tall, thin white man with glasses wearing camouflage clothing, but police had no other details.
Ripken told next-door neighbor Gus Kowalewski that the gunman didn’t seem to know her son was the Hall of Fame infielder nicknamed “Iron Man” for playing in 2,632 consecutive games during his 21-year career with the Baltimore.
“He said he just wanted money and her car,” Kowalewski said.
Investigators do not know the kidnapper’s motive and there was no ransom demand for Vi Ripken’s release, Aberdeen Police Chief Henry Trabert said at a news conference.
When asked if police believe the kidnapper knew who he was abducting, Trabert did not answer, saying investigators don’t know if the suspect has any ties to the Ripken family.
Kowalewski said he spoke with Vi Ripken later Wednesday morning and she told him the gunman tied her hands and put a blindfold on her, but said he wouldn’t hurt her.
“He lit cigarettes for her, they stopped for food,” Kowalewski said. “He said, ‘I’m not going to hurt you. I’m going to take you back,’ and that’s what he did.”
Kowalewski said Ripken told him the gunman originally planned to put tape over her eyes.
“But he didn’t do that because she said ‘please don’t do that ’cause I’m claustrophobic,'” said Kowalewski, a 72-year-old retired autoworker.
Instead, the gunman put some type of mask or blinders on her, and she could see somewhat out the sides, he said.
Mike Hudson, 43, whose mother lives across the street from Ripken, said he was surprised the kidnapper came back to the neighborhood because police were swarming over the area about midnight.
“It’s just hard to believe the guy came all the way back on the street and dropped her off. That makes me believe he was local, very local,” said Hudson, who is staying at his mother’s house while visiting with his daughter.
Ripken’s car didn’t appear to be damaged, he said.
“This has been a very trying time for our family, but we are grateful and relieved that mom is back with us, safe and healthy,” the Ripken family said in a statement. “We want to thank everyone for their tremendous support, especially all of the law enforcement agencies that worked so hard and quickly.”
After the gunman left, Ripken honked her car’s horn until a neighbor found her, Kowalewski said. He said he was surprised the honking didn’t wake him up. Someone reported a suspicious car to authorities and she was found, police said.
Vi Ripken is founding chairwoman of the Cal Ripken Sr. Foundation, which, according to its website, helps to build character for disadvantaged young people. Besides Cal and Bill, she has another son and a daughter.
The Ripken Baseball complex also is home to the annual Cal Ripken World Series for 11- and 12-year-olds. Cal Ripken Baseball is the name for the 5-to-12-year-old division of the Babe Ruth League.
Cal Ripken has scheduled a news conference for Friday morning in Baltimore, when he’s expected to provide an update on the investigation.
Aberdeen, Md., police have released a sketch and video of the suspect, but have provided few details.
With AP