Kidnapped as a Child: Why I Didn't Return

Kidnapped as a Child: Why I Didn't Return

March 3, 2026 · 28 min

About this episode

Todd Bequette shares his harrowing experience of being kidnapped as a child and discusses its lasting effects.

From February 21, 2007: Child abduction survivor, Todd Bequette, shares his experience of being kidnapped at age 13 and held captive for 18 months. He opens up about the abuse he suffered, the guilt he feels for recruiting other children and how this experience affected him. Elizabeth Smart’s father Ed discusses what happens when an abducted child returns home. Plus, President and CEO of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, Ernie Allen, discusses laws that need to change. Todd Bequette died of a heart attack in 2013.

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