MEMPHIS, Tenn. — An East Memphis neighborhood is reeling, one day after Memphis Police said one of their neighbors was kidnapped.
In just 24 hours, the community on Philwood Avenue has been put on high alert, when Memphis police said three people kidnapped one of their neighbors, Zachari Pappas, for hours.
“The truck was in the drive, and he wasn’t anywhere around,” said Sandy Scruggs.
The Memphian has called Philwood Avenue home with her husband Bobby for more than four decades. Thursday they are trying to figure out what happened just a couple doors down.
“They said a car pulled up about five minutes after he pulled in the drive. Three people got out and four got in,” said Scruggs, “It’s scary that people would do that….right out in broad daylight.”
Neighbors say Pappas had only been living in the neighborhood for a couple of weeks.
MPD said the suspects took off with the victim in a white Nissan with a black hood. Pappas told police the suspects forced him to transfer money through ATM’s, and gift cards from Family Dollar stores.
One of those locations was on Macon Road. Security footage shows the Nissan arriving around 8:21 p.m. and one of the suspects trying to purchase $1,400 in gift cards, but later left after their card was declined, according to police.
MPD later located the car, chased it, and brought Pappas to safety after suspects threw him out of the car in Northeast Memphis.
Officers later tracked down three suspects, one 16-year-old, one 17-year-old, and 18-year-old Bryan Martinez.
While the dust has mostly settled on Philwood, neighbors are worried this latest crime is just building on a recent trend.
“About two weeks ago we had people come through the neighborhood and break out car windows,” said Scruggs.
Now, neighbors are banding together, letting criminals know they will not stand for this. Many of them told ABC24 they are looking into upgrading security, including buying home security cameras.
MPD told ABC24 it does not believe the recent break-ins and Wednesday’s kidnapping are related, however, the Nissan suspects used was recently stolen out of Cordova June 17th.