For quin. She dropped the cash all right, but who picked it up . And thats where everything went wrong. Thats where everything went wrong. A kidnapping case about to go way off script. Her story did not make sense. What was really going on . Im a cop 11 years. I blushed when i listened to the tape. A story with more twists and turns than the florida roads they raced along trying to find this missing mom. This case was not going to turnout like a lot of people assumed. Hello and welcome to dateline extra. Im craig melvin. Whenever someone is kidnapped, it triggers a race against time as police often joined by the victims family, begin a search. Thats what happened in this story, which begins with a frantic call about a beautiful mother of two young daughters abducted from her home. But as you are about to see, though her family and veteran investigators spent desperate days trying to figure out where she was, they never could have guessed who had her. And why. Heres josh mankowitz. This is the Sheriffs Office. My wife gave me a phone call a minute ago. Called to say she was held by gunpoint. Businessman reid gray was on the line with the Sheriffs Office in a panic. He told the 911 operator his wife had just phoned him minutes earlier to say shed been kidnapped. You probably think its me, but its not. The call would turnout to be the beginning of an unbelievable saga that would baffle investigators and turn this husbands life upside down. The next few days would bring one set back after another. And no one could have predicted how it all would come to an end. It was around 5 00 p. M. , september 4th, 2009. Reids wife quin had called him at work and told him shed just been kidnapped right out of their 4 million home. Reid couldnt believe what hed heard and went to his Office Parking lot to try and think straight. Did she tell you where she was at . No. Theres a note in the house with the gunmans demands. The news was as shocking as terrifying. Quin, a mom of two young daughters, was a trained nurse who was now raising her children full time. Her husband was a selfmade man, who had finally hit it big in the health care business. This frightened husband told the 911 operator he didnt know what to do next. Call the police. They will shoot me dead. A gun is a gun, maam. Reid gray took a gamble and did the opposite of what his wife told him. Soon multiple Law Enforcement agencies would be on the case. Check and make sure the fire rescue is going to be coordinating with us. Saint johns county sheriff david shore. All bets are off. Theres nothing more important than a victim who is being held against her will and who has been threatened with homicide. So you roll out what you have. While reid went to the Sheriffs Office, a s. W. A. T. Team was deployed to his home. They cautiously entered the multimillion dollar residence. The house sat eerily empty. A photo album opened on a couch. A happy quin on her wedding day. Crime scene texts swept inside and out looking for fingerprints, tire tracks. Any clues to the kidnappers identities. On the dining room table, they found a sheet of yellow paper, the ransom note. It looked to be in quin grays handwriting. Dear reid, i need you to read this and be calm. Reid, do not be a hero. This is professional, and there are three men holding me right now and they want 50,000 cash. I will be okay if you get them the money. What do you know about the victim . We knew she was a housewife raising children in one of the prettier parts of our county. Reid and quin gray were new to Saint Johns County. Having just moved into their beachfront holm in upon tra vee dra, its an area known for its world famous golf course and luxe homes. I dont want to use the term perfect kidnapping victim, but it fit. And her husband made a lot of money. Her husband made a lot of money. Worst case scenario, we make one wrong move they kill her. On the day quin was kidnapped, the 37yearold pta mom had made appointments for her daughters to have hair cuts and she was far along in the planning for an Upcoming Party for one of her daughters birthdays. Now reid gray tried to shield the 8 and 6yearolds from the news that their moms life was in danger. He picked up his girls from school and took them to a friends house. While he waited at the Sheriffs Office. Reid was still in his shirt and tie from work, and he was an emotional wreck. He shared more details about quins brief frantic call to him hours earlier. Quin said that there is somebody with a gun pointed at her head. On that call, she said there were three kidnappers and they weral bainian. The 50,000 ransom was to pay back money reid had borrowed from a loan shark, but reid gray insists he didnt owe money to anyone. Probably make 1. 3 million this year. 50 grand doesnt mean much. Why ask 50,000 from a man making more than a Million Dollars a year . Reid didnt know, and neither did investigators. At this point, there was only one goal, quins safe return. It was very disconcerting to realize we had a housewife and mother of two small children and whatever she was going through, it wasnt good. And there was Something Else that wasnt good. This investigation was starting with no witnesses, no clues to the kidnappers identities. And more importantly, no answers to the question, where was quin gray . Coming up, quin appears on the phone, calling her husband with frantic instructions. Get in the car with the money. Just go. Take it, reid. Would he be able to get the cash and find his wife in time . When ransom continues. Im ken jacobus and i switched to the spark cash card from capital one. I earn unlimited 2 cash back on everything i buy. And last year, i earned 36,000 in cash back. Which i used to offer Health Insurance to my employees. Whats in your wallet . Im ray and i quit smoking with chantix. Smoking. It dictates your day. I didnt like something having control over me. I wanted to stop. The thing is i didnt know how. Chantix, along with support, helps you quit smoking. Chantix reduced my urge to smoke to the point that i could quit. When you try to quit smoking, with or without chantix, you may have nicotine withdrawal symptoms. Some people had changes in behavior or thinking, aggression, hostility, agitation, depressed mood, or suicidal thoughts or actions with chantix. Serious side effects may include seizures, new or worse heart or blood vessel problems, sleepwalking, or allergic and skin reactions which can be lifethreatening. Stop chantix and get help right away if you have any of these. Tell your Healthcare Provider if youve had depression or other Mental Health problems. Decrease alcohol use while taking chantix. Use caution when driving or operating machinery. The most common side effect is nausea. For me chantix worked. Boom. End of story. Talk to your doctor about chantix. Returning to our story, heres josh mankowitz. Reid gray, husband, father, and successful businessman was at the Sheriffs Office near his expensive home in pontra vedra, florida. A wealthy community 20 miles south of jacksonville. His wife quin was kidnapped just a few hours earlier. The ransom, 50,000. Im not going to be able to work, sleep, eat, breathe until this is resolved. One thing you have to understand is that in the modernday market place of crime, kidnapping for ransom is practically an antique. Heres why. Its not difficult to abduct a Family Member of a rich person, but things like improved technical surveillance, cooperation between Law Enforcement agencies, even caller i. D. , now make it just about impossible to pick up ransom money and escape undetected. As a result, the kind of kidnapping you see in the movies, pretty much exists only in hollywood. But for reid gray, this was frightening, nerve racking, reality. And no car trouble, no phone calls in the middle of the night, strange noises around the house, anything like that, right . No. Married for almost nine years, reid told investigators his relationship with quin was better than ever, and that the couple was even thinking about having another child. Shes been just an amazing friend. Shes active in taking the girls to dance, taking the girls to all their after school programs. She was a wonderful daughter, yes. Quins mom, gayle sykes. And thats very difficult for a mother to say who has four daughters, but she was absolutely the sweetest of all the children. That night, reid called his motherinlaw with the devastating news. I was just completely in shock. As a mother, its your Worst Nightmare imagining whats happening to your child. What do you think quin is going through at that point . Being tortured, tied up, fearing for her life, fearing that she would never see her children again. While quins mom waited for news at her georgia home, reid stayed at the Sheriffs Office until about 2 00 a. M. He then returned to his house while his kids stayed with friends. Early the next morning, saturday, about 16 hours after quins kidnapping, reid sent a text to his wifes phone. Havent slept all night. Please tell me youre all right. But there was no reply. About two hours later, reid, who was now with investigators, finally got a call. It was quin, and reid became emotional. What do i need to do . Theyll call you back. I dont know. Theyll call you back, okay . Okay. I love you. She said theyd call me back. They wired the phones. Sheriff shore was surprised to hear the kidnappeds voice. They usually dont let you communicate. He the advantage of the kidnapper is you dont ever hear their voice. Thats true. The sheriff rolled out his mobile unit to survey the home. He started directing the more than 100 Law Enforcement personnel who were working this case. They waited for the next contact from the kidnappers. And then about 45 minutes after that last call, reids phone rang again. The cell reception was poor, but quin gave reid a location for a money drop. Get in the car with the money and go down boulevard and take a left on i have to write this down. Just go. Take a left. Boulevard, hello . The conversation abruptly ended and quin sounded angry. It was easy to imagine the tremendous stress she must be under. Reid was growing increasingly worried for his wifes safety. She goes, you got the cops, you know theyre going to kill me. Shes going to call back again. The first time screaming, crying. Help. Reid stayed at the Sheriffs Office as surveillance teams scrambled to get in place at butler boulevard. Investigators also needed more time to get 50,000 cash together for the ransom. But only 30 minutes later, another call came in. Hello. It was quin again, instructing reid to head to a different location. He was now to go to a chickfila restaurant. Take the convertible top down and wait in the parking lot. I want to see you. I want to exchange you for the money. I am not giving the money without you. Hello . Now investigators rush to get teams in under cover cars in place at the chickfila, but they needed more time. So they told reid to play dumb on quins next call and say he didnt know which chickfila restaurant to go to. Which cell site are you at . Where are you . Youre supposed to be at the chickfila. There are three of them. You said on south side make a left. You need to go. I want to know youre going to be there. Let me talk to them right now. But once again, the call was abruptly cut off. Quin sounded frantic. Was it possible she had a gun to her head . Investigators tried to trace the calls, but they were all so short that an exact location couldnt be pinpointed. And according to detective howard cole, reid gray was becoming unhinged. He was scared and a nervous wreck. He was worried for himself, worried for her, worried for his family. But before reid left for the chickfila, he got yet another call. There was a problem at the money drop point. They spotted three fed cars near chickfila, so i dont know where im going now. You need to wait for more instructions. Were the sheriffs under cover teams spotted at the chickfila . Is that what quin meant by fed cars . A few minutes later on reids phone from quin, i know you want me dead. Reid texted back, i dont know if thats quin. I have your 50,000. Stop with me, just give me my wife. There was no reply. Investigators brought reid back do his house and parked in the driveway. They set up a mini command center in the house using a recorder to tape all incoming calls, and thats when something happened that no one expected. We sent the detectives to that home and we didnt do it surreptitiously because we hadnt thought about t. They walked in the front door . They pulled in in an unmarked vehicle. The minute we pulled in, we received ape text from the victim. Reid got another text from the cell phone. Wait for instructions. Youve up twice already. You involved other people. Whose ford is in the driveway . The ford was an unmarked sheriffs vehicle. Theyre watching the house. Theyre watching the house. Fearing they were being watched by the kidnappers, the sheriff ordered all his personnel to go covert and get out of sight. Were watching ourselves to see if theyre watching us. The kidnappers have you looking over your own shoulder. Thats exactly right. What does it say these guys are playing by a different set of rules . It was early indication s to me this case was not going to turnout like a lot of people assumed. Im ken jacobus and i switched to the spark cash card from capital one. I earn unlimited 2 cash back on everything i buy. And last year, i earned 36,000 in cash back. Which i used to offer Health Insurance to my employees. Whats in your wallet . She pretty much lives in her favorite princess dress. But once a week i let her play sheriff so i can wash it. I use tide to get out those week old stains and downy to get it fresh and soft. You are free to go. Tide and downy together. burke parking splat. And we covered it. Talk to farmers. We know a thing or two because weve seen a thing or two. We are farmers. Bumpadum, bumbumbumbum returning to our story, heres josh mankowitz. It was saturday afternoon. Quin gray, wife and mother of two, had been missing for almost 24 hours. After two attempted money drops failed, the local sheriff called in the fbi. Almost 150 people were now working to find quin gray. The agent in charge of the fbis Jacksonville Office is james casey. He says the kidnappers appear to be dee activating quins cell phone after each of the calls they made to reid. Somebody in the scheme was smart enough to take the battery out of the cell phone, because we were able to, through some technical capabilities, determine that that phone was not only off, but had no power to it at certain times. Meaning you cant trace it . Meaning you cant trace t. While there was no pinpointing an exact address where quins calls were originating, technicians were tracing pings when the phone was in use. Those are the electronic connections made when a phone hits a particular cell tower. And that gave investigators a general idea where quin might have been held. Fbi agent tony kravit was selected as the lead crisis negotiator for the bureau. Were tracking the phone and were thinking that, you know, weve got some leads. Agents felt they were making progress, but then suddenly the phone was also pinging farther away. The kidnappers and quin might have been on the move. Sheriffs detective howard cole was sent in pursuit. It was believed quin grays cell phone was being tracked to an area west of orlando. But something had gone wrong. Before tracing the calls, investigators had to get a judges approval. And in the rush to fill out the proper paperwork, someone made a small but critical error. When i actually went to get the order signed by a judge, what was typed into the actual affidavit and order, the numbers were transposed. So somebody put the wrong phone number in . Human error. So the phone you were following wasnt quins phone. Correct. How long did you follow that other phone . All day saturday. Suddenly what investigators thought were solid leads from quins cell phone simply vanished. When you realized you guys were following the wrong cell phone, what . My hair was on fire. Your hair my hair was on fire. I thought, how can Something Like this happen . So we were really back to square one. Who are we looking for . We had no idea. The rest of saturday went by with no word from quin or the kidnappers. Meanwhile, quins mom gayle sykes left her georgia home and headed to her daughters house in pontra vedra, florida. I jumped in my car and headed south. How long is the drive . 7 1 2 hours. Long drive with that kind of information in your brain. At around 2 00 a. M. When gayle arrived, she found an unbelievable scene. I walked into like a war zone. The s. W. A. T. Team was hiding inside the house . They were everywhere. I was told that they were outside, in the bushes, that they were on the roof. It was unreal. Early sunday morning, almost 36 hours since quin grays abduction, and 12 hours since the last contact from the kidnappers. Fbi Hostage Negotiator tony kravit decided to have quins mom send Text Messages to her daughters phone hoping the kidnappers would read them. Every 20 minutes, every hour, we send a message. Please call me. I love you. Let me know that youre safe. Im very worried about you. You want the kidnappers to start thinking of her as a mom who needs to go home to her family and not just a cash register. I want the kidnappers to think of quin gray as a wife, as a daughter, as a mother. Finally, a text came back about 9 30 a. M. , this time to quins moms phone. Have the money in a bag, no traceable devices, no reid whatsoever. If he is anywhere close, shes dead. No cops. Be ready to leave at 11 00. The kidnappers had apparently decided they no longer wanted to deal with reid. Why, because the kidnappers dont trust reid . Maybe. We dont know. One of the texts said he had messed it up already. After the failed chickfila drop, another thought was that mom was more controllable. So reid gray was no longer at the center of a huge Law Enforcement effort that was working around the clock to save his wife. How did reid feel about being shut out of that . Made him uncomfortable, i think. He didnt understand it. Nobody understood it, so we moved forward. Quins mother would make the next money drop. It was an unlikely roll for this 62yearold grandmother, a manager at a walmart,