West Bromwich potential kidnap update

Police have conducted a detailed investigation into allegations that a woman was potentially kidnapped in West Bromwich on Sunday evening (March 13).

Officers spoke to witnesses and reviewed CCTV after they received reports that a woman was dragged off the street into a car in Hill Top.

This afternoon they confirmed that they are discarding concerns that this was a kidnap, but said their Investigations around the car (a grey BMW X5) are ongoing.

Officers are also keen to speak to the woman to make sure she’s safe and well.

A West Midlands Police spokesperson said: “We are satisfied the woman was not kidnapped.

“It’s clear from the CCTV and witness accounts that the man and woman were having an argument. We believe they are known to each other and it was a domestic related incident.

“The woman was not dragged into the car, CCTV shows her walking to the car and getting into the front seat.

“While still concerning, we’re no longer investigating this as a potential kidnap.”

What did the public protection detectives say?

Detective Superintendent Annie Miller, from West Midlands Police public protection unit, said: “We’d like to thank everyone who shared our appeal and have provided information.

“The person who was concerned absolutely did the right thing by calling us and now we’ve been able to check the CCTV and see the sequence of events, it appears it wasn’t quite as it may have initially looked.

“We’re still following up enquiries to trace the woman and the car so we can make sure she’s okay.

“We understand things like this are deeply concerning for our communities - it’s frightening to think someone has potentially randomly approached a stranger and dragged them into a car. We hope this update provides some reassurance to you.”

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