A Miami woman and her accomplice have been charged with kidnapping after a credit card dispute spiraled out of control. Cristina Arrojo, 29, and Marcelo Asenjo Garcia, 52, allegedly abducted Arrojo's roommate, Amir Dalit Akbarnia, and his friend, Nigel Burkes, in a dramatic incident involving a rental U-Haul truck.
The saga began when Arrojo accused Akbarnia of stealing her credit card. Garcia allegedly emerged from the truck, assaulted Akbarnia and forced him to quickly get inside, with both victims subsequently taken to Akbarnia's father's house in search of the card, as WSVN reported. Finding no one home, the group then made a stop at a McDonald's on West Flagler Street in Sweetwater, where Akbarnia seized an opportunity to alert an employee about his abduction.
"Everyone gets off the truck to enter the fast food establishment to order food, and that’s when the victim seizes the opportunity to alert an employee and advises them that he has been abducted," Miami-Dade Police Department Detective Alvaro Zabaleta told WSVN. During the escape attempt, Arrojo reportedly bit Akbarnia and snatched his cellphone, fleeing the scene with her accomplices.
The employee promptly called 911, leading to the swift apprehension of the suspects by Sweetwater Police after saturating the area. "Because of the rapid response, they were able to saturate the area, locate the box truck and detain three individuals that were inside," Zabaleta said. Police officers found them at Southwest Sixth Street and 97 Avenue and during the investigation considered Burkes a witness to the kidnapping. However, he was arrested after officers discovered him to be in possession of crystal meth, as Local 10 reported.
All three suspects are expected to appear before a judge today. Arrojo faces multiple charges including kidnapping and robbery by sudden snatching. Garcia, who was already on probation for prior offenses, has been charged with kidnapping and a probation violation. Detectives have urged anyone with more information on the incident to contact Miami-Dade County Crime Stoppers at 305-471-8477.
