Chowchilla bus kidnapper Fred Woods, 70, has been approved for parole

[Eugene]

Source: CNN

70-year-old who kidnapped a bus full of children in 1976 has been approved for parole

By Stella Chan and Eric Levenson, CNN
Updated 1723 GMT (0123 HKT) March 29, 202

(CNN) — A 70-year-old man imprisoned for the 1976 kidnapping of a bus full of children has been approved for parole, according to spokesperson Joe Orlando of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR).

Frederick Newhall Woods, 70, was one of three men who kidnapped 26 children and their bus driver in Chowchilla, a small city in Northern California's Madera County, more than 45 years ago.

All 27 captives were taken to Livermore, more than 100 milies away, placed into a moving truck and buried alive in a quarry owned by Woods' father. The kidnappers then demanded $5 million ransom while the victims were underground in what was the largest mass kidnapping in US history, a scheme apparently inspired by a plot point in the movie "Dirty Harry."

After 16 hours underground, the driver and the children dug themselves out and escaped as the kidnappers were asleep.

-snip-

Read more: https://edition.cnn.com/2022/03/28/us/chowchilla-bus-kidnapper-parole/index.html

[Scrivener7]

1. Well that's crazy.

[Bristlecone]

2. There is a great Stuff You Should Know Podcast about this case

Not a True Crime thing per se, but details about the incident. It is an interesting episode.

[Goonch]

3. 27captives were taken to Livermore, more than 100 milies away, placed into a moving truck and buried

[love_katz]

4. None of the kidnappers should have ever been let out.