Oregon man, 85, thwarts attempted kidnapping by criminal posing as utility worker

An elderly man is being hailed as a hero after he risked his life to thwart an attempted kidnapping by a criminal posing as a utility worker outside his Oregon home. 

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The 85-year-old Good Samaritan, who has not been publicly identified, rushed out of his mobile home in a Medford neighborhood when he heard a woman screaming on May 8. 

He found Matthew Hokulii Aranda, 42, armed with a taser and attempting to wrangle a 25-year-old caretaker, according to the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office. 
 

Aranda

The octogenarian confronted the creep on the morning of May 8 during which the perpetrator allegedly tased the elderly man. However, the elderly man bought enough time for the frantic victim to get away. 

Police said that Aranda chased her while wielding a large hunting knife, but she scrambled into her car at the last second. 

He then dove onto the hood of her car as the caretaker was turning on the ignition. 

She was able to shake him off as she sped away, breaking his leg in the process, according to body camera footage released by the sheriff’s office. 

Cops found a battered Aranda cowering in a nearby bush. He moaned about his broken leg as they pulled him out of his hiding spot, before cuffing and hauling him off, body cam footage showed.

Dressed in a plain white t-shirt and khakis, Aranda had allegedly posed as a utility worker and loitered for several hours while waiting for the victim. 

The condition of the elderly hero and the victim are not immediately clear. 

Aranda was indicted on May 14 on a laundry list of charges, including stalking, attempted kidnapping, assault and unlawful use of a weapon. 

He was convicted in 2016 of charges stemming from his relationship with a 16-year-old girl he s£xually exploited and stalked. 

Several other charges, including one for first-degree r@pe, were dropped as part of a plea deal, the Rogue Valley Times reported. 

Aranda was sentenced to just over six years in prison for that crime.