A kidnapped woman was rescued after she slipped a note to a gas station customer in Arizona: 'Help ... call 911'

A woman was rescued by police from an alleged kidnapping after she slipped a note reading "Help" and "call 911" into the hand of a customer at a gas station in Arizona.

The note was passed to the customer at about 5 p.m. on Tuesday at a Chevron gas station in Seligman, according to the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office. The note had a description of the van, the direction it was headed, and a phone number, according to police, who released a photograph of the note.

The customer called 911 about the note and gave a description of the woman as well as the driver. The Yavapai County Sheriff's Office contacted the Arizona Department of Public Safety, and they were able to pull over the van on the I-40 interstate.

Investigators said the driver was identified as 41-year-old Jacob Wilhoit. He was detained without incident by police, who said he had multiple firearms "in plain view."

The woman told police that she knew Wilhoit and that he had tricked her into getting into his van on Monday at 7 a.m. by wearing a wig and pretending to be an Uber driver. Wilhoit allegedly kidnapped the woman from a car dealership in Phoenix and restrained her with zip ties before they spent the night at Lake Mead park.

The woman had been reported as a missing person earlier that afternoon, and Wilhoit had been identified as a person of interest, investigators said.

"It is a crazy story, but one that we wanted to tell specifically because of what the victim did for herself to help herself," said Kristin Greene, a spokesperson for the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office.

"A lot of us might've looked at this person like she was crazy, and thank goodness this customer took her seriously and the customer called 911," she added.

Wilhoit was charged with kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment, and aggravated assault, as well as several other assault charges.

Here's a news video about the harrowing incident:

Arizona woman helps save self from kidnapping attemptwww.youtube.com

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