A Texas man was charged with kidnapping in federal court in Wichita on Monday.
According to U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom, Joseph Andrew DeRusse, 24, Austin, Texas, was charged in a complaint in U.S. District Court in Wichita.
The complaint alleged that on Jan. 23, DeRusse kidnapped a victim and intended to force her to spend three weeks with him at a bed and breakfast in Narka, Kan., during which time he intended to convince her to marry him.
He is alleged to have abducted her at gunpoint in Austin, Texas, according to the complaint. DeRusse handcuffed her and blindfolded her before driving her from Texas to Kansas, according to the complaint. It was not until later she learned the weapon was a BB gun, authorities said.
DeRusse’s car was tracked by GPS during the drive to Kansas. On Friday, the Newton Police Department used the GPS information to find his car and pull him over on northbound I-135 at milepost 41, where they freed the victim. In the car, they found an engagement ring DeRusse had purchased.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison. The Newton Police Department and the FBI investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron Smith is prosecuting.