Anatomy of a Kidnapping: A Doctor’s Story

16.. The Capture

•218 A fter he left me in Bushland, Jack headed out Interstate 40 toward New Mexico. Perhaps he assumed that his intimidation tactics had worked, that the understanding doctor would stay silent about the morning’s events. But it still made sense to put as much distance between himself and his crime as possible. I imagine that the adrenaline rush of committing a crime combined with his paranoia, and Jack sped down the highway at top speed. He had a full tank of gas, cash and several stolen credit cards, and a drawerful of jewelry that could be sold for cash or drugs. I imagine that he hardly noticed the landmarks he was speeding by: miles of prairie land, several giant natural lakes, and the town of Tucumcari on the banks of the Canadian River, just past the Texas–New Mexico border. He had no time for sightseeing or bird-watching, no interest in visiting the Mesalands Dinosaur Museum. He probably did not know that he passed the Mesa Redonda, a huge, multicolored, flat-topped hill that looks like a lunar projection. The infamous train robber 16 The Capture The Capture 219• Black Jack Ketchum used the mesa as a hideout before he was caught, tried quickly, West Texas style, and sentenced to death. Jack Jordan would not have slowed down for these landmarks, but continued onward past Santa Rosa, a town with such deep lakes that scuba divers can receive their certification utilizing the eighty-foot-deep artesian well located downtown. Jack’s chosen destination was Albuquerque, New Mexico, about an hour from Santa Rosa. For Amarilloans and other tourists , Albuquerque is a quaint town of Indian arts and crafts, Mexican restaurants, the Old Town Plaza, anthropology museums, and an autumn hot air balloon festival. It is also the home of the University of New Mexico, college basketball games, Internet caf és, and a varied nightlife. But to Jack, Albuquerque is something quite different. It is a haven for street gangs and independent drug dealers peddling methamphetamines and crack cocaine. Seven percent of New Mexico high school students report the use of meth. And among U.S. high school students, those in New Mexico rank third for the highest prevalence of methamphetamine use. Many of the adult males and adolescents arrested in Albuquerque test positive for methamphetamines. Methamphetamine was detected in 22 percent of Albuquerque forensic lab tests.18 Almost immediately upon driving into town, Jack found an accomplice. He joined up with Danella Van Damme, also known as Vandella Williams, a twenty-five-year-old white female with long black stringy hair, a fair complexion, and large, sad eyes. Little is known about her either before or after Jack Jordan’s crime spree, but she met up with Jack in Albuquerque and they sought to score drugs together. Shortly after arriving in Albuquerque, Jack loaned his white Montero to a man named Niño (who had no last name) to make a drug transaction. Jack unloaded Shirley’s AN AT OMY OF A K ID NAP P ING •220 ring collection in exchange for drugs. That was the last Jack saw of Niño, the Montero, or the stolen property. Jack left Albuquerque with Danella in a red and white pickup truck, which apparently belonged to Van Damme’s brother. Later, the white Montero was found in downtown Albuquerque. It contained rifle and shotgun ammunition, spent shells, and a prescription for a pain medication that had Jack Lindsey Jordan’s name on it. Shirley’s rings were lost forever. It is unclear what Jack and Danella did on March 7, the day after my kidnapping. However, at midnight on March 8, they experienced car trouble as they headed west on Interstate 40 toward Arizona. At a truck stop just west of Gallup, New Mexico, they found themselves in the vulnerable position of running from the law with a truck that was so overheated it would have to be abandoned . They had to find another vehicle. The Vannovers were tourists from Canada who were traveling across the American Southwest. They pulled up to the truck stop in their RV towing a white Grand Cherokee. Jack and Danella watched Mrs. Vannover as she headed to the restroom in the darkness. Jack crossed the parking lot and entered the cab of the RV through the passenger side door. He aimed his shotgun at Robert Vannover, who...