Excelsior Springs police investigate alleged kidnapping, sexual assault. Suspect in custody

Update: Police said Friday evening they expect the investigation of the alleged kidnapping at an Excelsior Springs home to continue for days. That story is posted here.

Police were investigating a kidnapping and sexual assault after a woman reported she was held against her will at an Excelsior Springs home early Friday morning.

The woman contacted police in Excelsior Springs at 7:47 a.m., saying she had been held against her will and sexually assaulted in the 300 block of Old Orchard Street, Clay County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Sarah Boyd said in a news release.

Several neighbors told The Star that a woman ran out of the house seeking help around 7:40 a.m. She appeared to have been beaten and was handcuffed, and said there were two other female victims.

Clay County deputies and Excelsior Springs police took a suspect into custody and authorities sought a search warrant.

Uniformed police officers and plainclothes detectives maintained a heavy presence on the block through late Friday afternoon.

Investigators were seen going through a pile of trash in the backyard of the ranch-style residence, and other neighbors reported witnessing the removal of a blue barrel from the basement into the yard, which was placed under an evidence tent that had been set up.

Several neighbors continued to watch the scene of their front yards, porches and driveways.

Missy Hancock, a neighbor who lives on the next street, said for the three years she saw the resident’s backyard, it was trashy and always filled with junk. She said the man who lives there was around before she moved to the neighborhood.

She tried to speak to him once since they were neighbors, she said. But, she added:“He wasn’t having it.”

This is a developing story and will be updated.

This story was originally published October 7, 2022 at 2:14 PM.