A witness to an alleged abduction is speaking out on what he says he saw last Thursday at a Henrietta hotel.
āI woke up to a loud commotion, banging and screaming," said Jodee Burkett of Rochester.
Burkett described a chaotic scene of what officials say was a woman being taken from the Microtel Hotel on Lehigh Station Road against her will. Surveillance video shows her fighting and kicking in an attempt to get away.
āThe whole time Iām just hearing screams for help,ā said Burkett who was staying overnight at the Microtel in a room with a view. āAnd I really did not know whether or not it was real or not. It woke me up right out of my sleep. So I just immediately looked outside."
Burkett says he watched the events unfold about 20 to 30 feet in front of him.
The Monroe County Sheriffās Office released the hotel security footage showing a woman and a man forcibly dragging the woman out of the hotel lobby.
āSo I just saw a girl being pulled out of the front door of the hotel,ā Burkett said. āThey dragged her, opened up the backseat and threw her into the car. She actually kicked the backseat open and managed to get halfway out of the car. I really thought she was going to get out of there. But Iām assuming they either grabbed her by the hair or some kind of clothing that she had on her and just held on to her and literally drove off with her halfway out the door.ā
There wasnāt enough time for Burkett to get outside and intervene, but he says he immediately called 911.
āI couldnāt get the license plate of the car, but I actually remember the entire description of the car so thatās what I called the cops with,ā he said. āI led with the description of the car so I didnāt forget it and I told them which way they were going.ā
By day's end, authorities say they tracked down and apprehended the suspects and rescued the kidnap victim.
Cordell Brooks and Shuntiayana Sims are each charged with kidnapping and assault and a grand jury has indicted both suspects on one felony count, according to the Monroe County District Attorney's Office. More information is expected to be released on the case once the grand jury rises.
"I kept thinking about her throughout the whole day,ā Burkett said. āI donāt know who she is, where sheās from, none of that stuff [but] I just hope sheās OK.ā
Deputies say the victim was sent to the hospital and is now receiving services.
āI got two daughters, so I would advise people [to] keep the women in your life close to you, always protect them, keep your arms over them, everything like that,ā Burkett said. āAs far as Iām concerned, I canāt even imagine if anything like that happened to a woman in my family. I was raised by a woman. And like I said, I got two daughters. I got all sisters. So when I see something like that, itās terrible. It really is.ā