Woman kidnapped off the street in DC, tossed naked into U-Haul until police were alerted to suspect driving erratically, crashing truck into parked cars

On Friday, a 62-year-old Maryland man, Dennis Bell, was arrested after police conducted a traffic stop of the U-Haul truck he was driving to discover a naked woman inside who had been kidnapped earlier in the day.

Maryland police said in a press release, "The victim told police that Bell pushed her into the U-Haul truck and threatened her life if she did not comply with his demands."

Bell allegedly met the unidentified woman at a convenience store located on Minnesota Avenue Southeast in Washington, DC, abducted her, and then made her sit in the front seat with him, down on the floorboard, as he drove around town "all day."

According to police, "The victim reported that while in Bell’s truck, he removed her clothing and used a pocketknife to stab her fingers. The victim informed police that she did not know where she was throughout the day while Bell continued to drive."

Calls came in to authorities of a U-Haul truck driving erratically in Lanham, Maryland and hitting parked cars. Police eventually intervened but the driver refused to stop and only came to a rest after driving into a ditch.

Police neared the vehicle and when they came up on the passenger side they saw the victim on the floor bed, naked and with wounded fingers. She was taken to a local hospital where she was treated for her injuries.

Bell was noncompliant during the encounter and was eventually arrested and charged with fourth-degree sex offense, first-degree assault, kidnapping, false imprisonment, driving while impaired, possession of suspected crack cocaine, and related offenses. 

Bell faces a total of 14 criminal charges and 19 traffic charges in connection with the incident.

Bell was taken to the Upper Marlboro Department of Corrections for holding.