Fashion Place Mall, 2023

Murray Police Dept Victim Interview, Nov. 9, 1974:

Detective Riet: Would you give me your name please?

DaRonch: Carol DaRonch.

Riet: Approx. what time were you over at the Fashion Place Mall last night? Do you remember?

DaRonch: About a little after 7:00.

Riet: Where did you park your car?

DaRonch: In the Sears parking lot on the west side.

Riet: How long were you in the mall before you were approached by the suspect?

DaRonch: About 10 or 15 minutes.

Riet: Had you noticed the suspect anytime when you left your car to when he first approached you?

DaRonch: No.

Riet: What was his story when he approached you? What did he say?

DaRonch: He asked me if I had a car parked in Sears parking lot, and I told him I did, and he asked me if I knew the license plate on it, and I told him. Then he said someone was trying to break into my car with a piece of wire and someone else saw him trying to break in and went into Sears and reported it to him. And then we walked out the doors between Auerbachs and Ropers and walked over towards my car, and then I got my keys out and opened the door on the driver's side. Nothing was gone. I still had my three tapes, and my stereo was there.

Then he went around to the other side of the door, and he wanted me to open it. I asked him what for. I said, "I know what's in my car, and nothing's gone. Let's go see who the guy is...."

Riet: Were you suspicious of him then?

DaRonch: Yes. And also when he was trying to open it, he went around to the other side of my car door, and when he moved, I saw something shiny, it could have been the handcuffs in his jacket. I didn’t think anything of it then. Then we walked back into Sears and down the sidewalk clear to the other side, and he said, “They must have gone over to the substation.”

So we walked out of the mall, and then we crossed the street where the dry cleaners and J.B.'s are, and he walked over to the door by the dry cleaners on the side and said, “This is it.” He knocked on the door, but no one answered. I stood in the light in front of the dry cleaning place, and he said no one was there; they must have took him down to headquarters. He asked me if I wanted to sign a complaint and said that he thought I should, and that he would take me down there.

I asked him for his ID— I felt kind of dumb, but I asked him for it once before too, I forgot. He didn’t show me, just kind of laughed like I was stupid or something, but then this time I told him again that I wanted to see his ID. So he opened his wallet and showed me a badge that was all gold, but I couldn’t see any writing on it. He put it back inside his jacket; then we walked to his car— he was parked facing west. He was really nice, opened all the doors for me.

I got in, and he told me to put my seat belt on, he goes, “It makes me nervous.” I said no, I didn’t want to put it on. Then he turned around, and I started wondering why he didn’t go on State, but he turned around and went east. He had been drinking; I could tell. And then he stopped by the McMillan School; the car kind of went up on the curb a little bit and came back down. I said, ”What are we doing?” and then I opened the car door and stuck my foot out. Then he grabbed my right arm and stuck the handcuffs on it. I started screaming and pulling away. Then he pulled a gun out of his jacket, and he said he'd shoot me.

I started screaming again and pulling out of the car. I got outside of the car with him. He was pulling and fighting with me, but I had a hold of his hand. He had a crowbar in it, so I grabbed the crowbar so he couldn't hit me with it. He kept trying to push it down on me, and I can't remember if I fell or not. Finally, I don't know how I did it, I tore away and ran out into the street. I thought he was following me, so I saw a car and stood in the middle of the street. I started waving and running towards it, and they stopped.

Riet: Are there any marks or bruises on you? Did he hit you at all? Did it seem like he was really fighting as hard as he could? If he’s that big of a man, I would think that he would have been able to subdue you with the crowbar. Did he try to hit you with it at all?

DaRonch: It seems like he should have been able to, but I had a hold of it.
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Scenes from the Carol DaRonch abduction, then and now.