Maryland Casino Player Kidnapped From Home

Posted on: January 20, 2024, 07:06h. 

Last updated on: January 20, 2024, 07:06h.

Ed Silverstein @casinoorgedsilv Read More

Expertise: Legal, Tribal Gaming.

A Maryland man was found Friday after he was apprehended days earlier from in front of his house. He had just driven home from a local casino when he was forced into a van.

The victim, Joel Edwards, 62, was discovered in a “safe” condition, according to Baltimore County police.

Details about possible injuries weren’t provided by authorities.

It’s known by police that he was kidnapped from his driveway in Baltimore’s Gwynn Oak neighborhood at about 8:42 p.m. Wednesday, according to Baltimore TV station WBAL.

Witnesses told WBAL they believed Edwards had been at Live! Casino & Hotel Maryland in Hanover, Md. and had just arrived home when the incident unfolded.

He parked his truck in the driveway and exited the vehicle. A man was outside near the home’s garage and assaulted Edwards. Suddenly, the van arrived, driven by a second man, and the two suspects forced Edwards into the van. It then sped away.

Neighbors Shocked

Nearby residents were puzzled by the crime.

Why would they want to kidnap him and abduct him? What for? I don’t understand that,” one resident told WBAL.

“This is a quiet street, a quiet neighborhood, and I’m just shocked. I saw the police out there, so I came out and I saw police going door-to-door,” another resident revealed in a TV interview.

Edwards’ wife said she had heard him screaming so she went outside to see what was taking place.

He started yelling and screaming for me so I ran outside, but I couldn’t do too much,” the woman told Baltimore TV station WMAR. “I didn’t have any shoes on. I didn’t have anything on, and he was yelling for me, and he was yelling for them to get off of him.”

In statements to the media, police didn’t release a motive for the kidnapping.

Robbery Likely Motive

But the victim’s wife told WMAR, “I think it’s robbery. That’s what police were saying. I think that’s what it is.”

My husband is a gambler, so I don’t know. Maybe somebody watched him as he was leaving the casino or something. I don’t know right now.”

She added there was a possibility that the suspects followed him home from the gaming property, which is about 22 miles from his residence.

Residents also confirmed that Edwards liked to gamble at casinos.

No word if Edwards had won a jackpot at the casino during the hours before he returned home.

Following the kidnapping, police later found the van. Authorities didn’t say where or when it was located.

Police reviewed a video of the attack and kidnapping from an outdoor surveillance system.