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U.S. Forest Service employees zip-tied, held hostage in Shasta-Trinity National Forest
U.S. Forest Service employees zip-tied, held hostage in Shasta-Trinity National Forest
by Vada Hepner
Fri, July 17, 2026 at 3:13 PM
Updated Fri, July 17, 2026 at 9:27 PM
SISKIYOU COUNTY, Calif. — Two U.S. Forest Service (USFS) employees were safely released Friday, July 17, after federal authorities said they were held hostage for hours at a remote campground in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest in Siskiyou County.
USFS Chief Tom Schultz was joined by FBI Sacramento Acting Special Agent in Charge Brian Tosh, Siskiyou County Sheriff Jeremiah LaRue, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant, the top federal prosecutor for the Eastern District of California, and other law enforcement partners for a press conference Friday afternoon at Shasta Lake Ranger Station in Redding.
Two U.S. Forest Service employees were freed after federal authorities said they were held hostage for hours in a trailer in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest. (KRCR)
Schultz said the employees were conducting seasonal field work on the shafts when they were kidnapped on Thursday, July 16, at Gumboot Campground in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest. ... The armed kidnapper was later identified as 49-year-old Joseph Charles Henrichsen. ... The USFS first received a call just before 11 a.m. Thursday reporting that a man had zip-tied two Forest Service employees and was holding them at gunpoint inside a trailer at Gumboot Lake. LaRue said Joseph had indicated that he had firearms and ammunition and wanted to speak with the FBI.
The situation prompted a large, multi-agency law enforcement response that included SWAT teams, FBI negotiators, drones, bomb technicians and the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team. Sheriff deputies deployed to the area, and by 1:03 p.m., they identified the trailer using an aerial drone. ... FBI agents arrived from Redding, and the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team joined from Quantico, Virginia. Negotiations began at about 4:20 p.m. on Thursday, officials said. ... After an overnight standoff, FBI negotiators secured the safe release of both hostages in the early morning hours of Friday, July 17, before Henrichsen surrendered, authorities said.
{snip}
by Vada Hepner
Fri, July 17, 2026 at 3:13 PM
Updated Fri, July 17, 2026 at 9:27 PM
SISKIYOU COUNTY, Calif. — Two U.S. Forest Service (USFS) employees were safely released Friday, July 17, after federal authorities said they were held hostage for hours at a remote campground in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest in Siskiyou County.
USFS Chief Tom Schultz was joined by FBI Sacramento Acting Special Agent in Charge Brian Tosh, Siskiyou County Sheriff Jeremiah LaRue, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant, the top federal prosecutor for the Eastern District of California, and other law enforcement partners for a press conference Friday afternoon at Shasta Lake Ranger Station in Redding.
Two U.S. Forest Service employees were freed after federal authorities said they were held hostage for hours in a trailer in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest. (KRCR)
Schultz said the employees were conducting seasonal field work on the shafts when they were kidnapped on Thursday, July 16, at Gumboot Campground in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest. ... The armed kidnapper was later identified as 49-year-old Joseph Charles Henrichsen. ... The USFS first received a call just before 11 a.m. Thursday reporting that a man had zip-tied two Forest Service employees and was holding them at gunpoint inside a trailer at Gumboot Lake. LaRue said Joseph had indicated that he had firearms and ammunition and wanted to speak with the FBI.
The situation prompted a large, multi-agency law enforcement response that included SWAT teams, FBI negotiators, drones, bomb technicians and the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team. Sheriff deputies deployed to the area, and by 1:03 p.m., they identified the trailer using an aerial drone. ... FBI agents arrived from Redding, and the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team joined from Quantico, Virginia. Negotiations began at about 4:20 p.m. on Thursday, officials said. ... After an overnight standoff, FBI negotiators secured the safe release of both hostages in the early morning hours of Friday, July 17, before Henrichsen surrendered, authorities said.
{snip}
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