Grandmother of Canby kidnapping victim shares new details

PORTLAND Ore. (KPTV) - In an exclusive interview, the maternal grandmother of the Canby kidnapping victim shared new details about the case. To protect the family’s privacy, FOX 12 chose not to share the grandmother’s identity.

What started as a normal evening spent with family quickly turned into a parent’s worst nightmare. Just before 2 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 28, a man, identified by law enforcement as 36-year-old Vince Chavez, entered a unit at the Orchards Apartments in Canby. Chavez allegedly hit a 12-year-old girl with a hammer several times before kidnapping her 10-year-old stepsister.

“The girls were asleep in the living room. [Their mother] was asleep in her bedroom,” said the grandmother.

The grandmother said her daughter, who is the girls’ mother, was asleep in her bedroom with a fan on, but woke up when she heard someone in the living room.

“She came out and she heard a man’s voice... And all she could see was the blood and my granddaughter unconscious,” the grandmother said. “And then it clicked in her mind, ‘Wait a minute, I’ve got another daughter,’ and she looked. And at that time, the guy was taking her out of the house.”

The grandmother added that the girls’ mother saw Chavez’s vehicle outside.

“The van was parked right outside the house,” she said. “That’s how we knew it was a white van.”

According to the grandmother, the girls’ mother knew the man who broke in, having met him through a dating website several months ago.

“She’s just a mom that was on a regular website — Cupid — and she met him (Chavez) and his daughter,” the grandmother said.

According to the grandmother, her daughter dated Chavez for two weeks and ended things after she became concerned about his motives.

“He showed interest in [the 10-year-old] and she told him she didn’t want to see him anymore,” the grandmother said.

According to law enforcement, the girls’ mother was home at the time of the alleged assault and kidnapping and called 911.

The 10-year-old was missing for about 13 hours. Police launched an extensive search and rescued the 10-year-old from a home in Oregon City, where investigators said Chavez was renting a room.

Investigators said the 10-year-old was found in a closet, duct-taped inside of a duffel bag. Police arrested Chavez, who is facing several charges, including attempted murder, kidnapping and sexual assault. The grandmother recounted how she felt when she learned her granddaughter was found alive.

“Oh my god,” she said. “Hearing that conversation was about the best news we could get.”

The grandmother said the 10-year-old is currently staying with her father and added that it will take a long time for both girls to feel safe again.

“We want him to pay the price,” she said. “And we don’t want no family to go through this ever again.”

Chavez is scheduled to be back in court in Clackamas County Thursday morning.