A suspected kidnapper has been arrested thanks to a quick-thinking bystander who alerted police after the alleged victim courageously passed her a note in a gas station restroom.
The witness, whose identity remains undisclosed, had stopped at the Cedar Band Travel Plaza near Cedar City, Utah, on March 8 when the alleged victim discreetly approached her.
The victim handed over a small piece of paper with a handwritten plea for “help,” along with details about her identity and the suspect’s vehicle.
“The lady just flung the door open, handed me the paper, and said, ‘Please give this to police,’” the bystander told KSL-TV.
Concerned, she asked, “Are you in trouble?” The alleged victim responded with a simple, “Yes.”
The bystander agreed to help, and the woman—visibly shaking—added, “Give this to police. I have to go. He’s waiting right outside. He’s right there.”
Acting quickly, the bystander pretended to be on her phone while discreetly recording video as the woman and her alleged captor got into a Chevrolet Equinox. She then followed the vehicle to capture its license plate number before calling 911 to report the situation.
Authorities later arrested 53-year-old Epigmenio Bustillos Marquez during a coordinated traffic stop about eight miles south of the gas station. He now faces multiple charges, including aggravated kidnapping, assault, providing false personal information to a peace officer, and interfering with a communication device.
Epigmenio Bustillos Marquez, 53, was arrested on March 8 during a coordinated traffic stop approximately eight miles south of the Cedar Band Travel Plaza near Cedar City, Utah. He was captured on video at the gas station by a quick-thinking bystander who helped rescue his alleged kidnapping victim.
The alleged victim approached her in the gas station restroom and discreetly handed over a scrap of paper (pictured) with a handwritten plea for “help,” along with details about her identity and the suspect’s vehicle.
The bystander agreed to help and observed Marquez and the alleged victim inside the gas station for several minutes. She noted that Marquez purchased a hot dog and a drink (pictured) before leaving with the alleged victim in a white Chevrolet Equinox.
The bystander was on her way home from a softball tournament when she stopped at a gas station in Cedar City, about 170 miles north of Las Vegas, on March 8.
From the moment the alleged victim handed her a note reading, “Help me, call police,” she knew the woman was in trouble.
“I think she was really terrified that he was going to peek in and see us,” she recalled in an interview with Fox 13 Now.
Determined to help, the witness spent several minutes observing the woman and Marquez inside the gas station. She noted that Marquez purchased a hot dog and a drink before leaving with the alleged victim in a white Chevrolet Equinox.
Secretly recording the interaction on her phone, the bystander got into her car and followed the SUV as it traveled northbound on Interstate 15. She called 911 as soon as she captured the vehicle’s license plate, which was registered in Nevada, and remained on the phone with police while continuing to follow them.
“I wasn’t panicked or anything,” she said. “I was just like, ‘I’m not gonna let this lady not be helped.'”
Acting as if she were on her phone, the woman discreetly recorded video as the alleged victim and her suspected kidnapper got into a Chevrolet Equinox. She then followed the vehicle to capture its license plate number before calling 911 to alert authorities.
The back of the woman’s note (pictured) revealed that Marquez was taking her to Salt Lake City, Utah, approximately 250 miles north of the gas station in Cedar City.
A deputy from the Iron County Sheriff’s Office spotted Marquez’s vehicle just before 1:30 p.m. and coordinated a traffic stop, approaching the SUV from the passenger’s side.
According to court documents obtained by Fox 13, Marquez provided the officer with a fake ID, claiming to be a man from Durango, Mexico. Investigators later discovered a second Mexican ID that confirmed his true identity.
The officer noted that the alleged victim was acting strangely during their conversation and asked her to step out of the vehicle.
She later told authorities that she and Marquez had been in a relationship for 25 years, but his behavior had recently become unpredictable.
The woman claimed that Marquez was supposed to drive her to a hotel in Las Vegas, where she worked, but instead, he accused her of cheating on him when he picked her up.
She alleged that he then threatened to take her to Salt Lake City or Denver and refused to let her out of the vehicle. She also claimed Marquez hit her in the face and took her phone, preventing her from calling for help.
Marquez is currently being held without bail at the Iron County Jail.
The back of the woman’s note (pictured) stated that Marquez was taking her to Salt Lake City, Utah, approximately 250 miles north of the gas station in Cedar City.
A deputy from the Iron County Sheriff’s Office located Marquez’s vehicle just before 1:30 p.m. and initiated a traffic stop, approaching the SUV from the passenger’s side.
According to court documents obtained by Fox 13, Marquez provided the officer with a fake ID, claiming to be a man from Durango, Mexico. However, investigators later uncovered a second Mexican ID that confirmed his true identity.
The officer noted that the alleged victim was acting unusually during their conversation and asked her to step out of the vehicle.
She later told police that she and Marquez had been in a relationship for 25 years, but his behavior had recently become erratic.
The woman claimed that Marquez was supposed to drive her to a hotel in Las Vegas, where she worked, but instead, he accused her of infidelity when he picked her up.
She alleged that he then threatened to take her to Salt Lake City or Denver and refused to let her leave the vehicle. She also claimed Marquez struck her in the face and took her phone, preventing her from calling for help.
Marquez is currently being held without bail at the Iron County Jail.
