A pair of New York grandparents, James Helm Sr., 76, and Sandra Helm, 70, were kidnapped Sept. 27, taken to Canada, had hoods placed over their heads, and were held for a ransom of 50 kilograms of cocaine worth roughly $3.5 million, authorities say. The drugs in question, however, had already been seized by the Drug Enforcement Administration when the couple’s son was arrested Sept. 21. Authorities, who described the kidnapping as a “terrifying ordeal,” used cellphone data to track the couple to Magog, Quebec, and apprehend their assailants, six of whom are charged with the abduction. One American man, Graigory Brown, is charged with conspiracy to kidnap in the Southern District of New York, and the remaining suspects were charged in Canada.
