Cal Ripken Jr. Talks About Mom's Kidnapping

Cal Ripken Jr. says his 74-year-old mother is doing "pretty good" and has been comforted by family members since her kidnapping last week.

Vi told police she was kidnapped at gunpoint last week outside her home in Aberdeen, Md. She was blindfolded and driven around. She was found unharmed in her car the following day.

During a news conference Friday morning in Baltimore, the Hall of Fame infielder said the reunion with his mother was "emotional" after she was found just a few houses down from where she'd been taken.

"We were all thinking the worst possible things" while his mother was missing, Ripken said, calling the incident bizarre and unsettling.

"You know, it's a traumatic situation that she was involved in, traumatic for all of us in the family, and we're trying really hard to come together and support each other," Ripken said during the conference. "But Mom, by and large, is a tough, strong woman."

However, Vi has not yet returned to her home. "Emotionally, we've all changed how we view our own security, her security, and she's affected, no doubt about it."

Ripken also thanked the public for their concern and thank authorities working on the case. Aberdeen police have released a sketch and video of the suspect, but have provided few details.

The video from a retail outlet in Anne Arundel County shows a man in an orange cap and a light-colored coat entering and exiting, police said. 

Police are looking for a white man in his mid-30s to early 40s, 5'10" tall and weighing 180 pounds. He had short brown hair and was wearing glasses, a light-colored shirt and camouflage pants. He is considered armed and dangerous.

"Law encorcement does need your  help," Ripken said, noting that the motive for his mother's kidnapping remains unknown. He said he thinks the act was premeditated.

Anyone who recognizes the man in the surveillance video or sketch or knows something about the case should call Aberdeen police at 410-835-5432. Anonymous tips can be made online or by texting a message beginning with “MCS” to 274637.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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