A Southern California woman recalls the terrifying moment she said was Tazed and attacked during an attempted abduction.
The incident happened on Dec. 18 as the victim, Erin Quinn, a Temecula resident, said she was picking up toys for a local holiday toy drive.
That morning, she received a text message from an unknown number with a 213 area code. The texter claimed to be an elderly woman named Connie who asked Quinn to pick up toys for a holiday toy drive she was participating in.
Quinn agreed to help and was told to meet the texter at a property located on Memory Lane in Winchester.
When she arrived, she was walking to the front door when she received another text asking her to stay in her car as someone would bring the toys outside.
Quinn, who had left her car unlocked, said she obliged and walked back to her car before getting back into the driver’s seat.
-
Text messages from the attacker pretending to be an elderly woman looking to donate toys for a holiday drive. (KTLA) -
Text messages from the attacker pretending to be an elderly woman looking to donate toys for a holiday drive. (KTLA) -
Erin Quinn’s vehicle was damaged after she crashed during an attempted abduction in Riverside County on Dec. 18, 2024. (Erin Quinn) -
Erin Quinn’s vehicle was damaged after she crashed during an attempted abduction in Riverside County on Dec. 18, 2024. (Erin Quinn) -
The victim sustained head injuries from being repeatedly Tased during an attempted kidnapping and assault in Riverside County. (Erin Quinn) -
The victim was left with bruising on her body following an attempted kidnapping and assault in Riverside County. (Erin Quinn)
The moment she sat down, she said someone grabbed her hair from behind her seat and attacked her. Someone had snuck into her car during the short time she was away.
“Someone grabs my hair and puts a Taser to my head,” she said.
Fearing for her life, Quinn said he tried running away, but wasn’t strong enough to escape the female suspect. She kept honking her horn, hoping someone would hear her, but nobody came. Then, Quinn said her attacker ordered her to drive.
“She had me drive and she’s got the Taser on my head, pulling my hair and telling me to drive,” she recalled.
The suspect reportedly threatened to attack Quinn’s children and mother next. Quinn kept driving and they eventually arrived at a construction site. She claimed several bystanders witnessed the hostage situation but did not intervene.
“Nobody’s doing anything, so I start driving [again] and as I’m driving, [the suspect] is Tasering me and pulling my hair and it caused me to crash my car,” she said.
After her SUV was smashed on the driver’s side, they came to a stop and that’s when she got a closer look at the attacker.
She said she instantly recognized the woman as a former housekeeper who had worked for her. The woman had reportedly disguised herself with a blonde wig.
Both women got out of the car and began scuffling. Quinn said she bit a piece of her attacker’s finger off during the altercation.
Eventually, a bystander ran over to help before the suspect fled the scene.
“My brain was jolting so bad and my body was shutting down and I thought either I was going to die or I was going to pass out,” Quinn recalled.
She was left with injuries to her head and bruising on her arms and legs. She said the entire ordeal was a living nightmare.
“I am completely terrified,” Quinn said. “I don’t know why she would do this.”
The incident was reported to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department who confirmed they are investigating the case as a potential kidnapping and assault with a deadly weapon.
The suspect, whose identity was not released as no formal charges were made, remains at large.
Quinn said she’s thankful to be alive and hopes the suspect is caught soon.
