Woman slips note to Walmart employee: ‘Call the police, kidnapped,’ Texas cops say

A kidnapped woman is safe after some quick thinking at a Walmart in Texas over the weekend, police say.

Anthony Montez, 51, and Erica Lopez, 43, kidnapped a woman from her apartment in Corpus Christi and took her to an area Walmart on Sunday, police say, according to KRIS. The duo forced her to shoplift to pay back debts she allegedly owed them, police say.

While at the store, the woman, age 41, slipped a note to an employee, KCEN reported.

The note read “ ‘Call the police, kidnapped,’ ” Lt. Michael Pena told the outlet.

The employee told police that the victim and Lopez were still in the store, the Caller Times reported. Montez was waiting outside for the pair when police arrived and tried to run away, but both he and Lopez were ultimately arrested, police say.

Montez and Lopez are both charged with aggravated kidnapping and retaliation, KCEN reported. Montez is also charged with evading arrest, according to KRIS.

This story was originally published November 26, 2019 at 6:51 AM with the headline "Woman slips note to Walmart employee: ‘Call the police, kidnapped,’ Texas cops say."