St. Pete Couple Charged in Riverview Kidnapping

A St. Petersburg couple faces a host of criminal charges after Hillsborough County Sheriff’s deputies say they forced their way into a Riverview woman’s home, held her at knifepoint and took off with a 12-week-old girl.

The man charged in the case is the baby’s biological father, but he does not have custody.

The incident unfolded Wednesday at 30-year-old Monica Buzbee’s Bay Gardens Loop home in Riverview. Deputies say Joshua Benford, 31, and Victoria Saucedo, 22, kicked open the door to the home. Once inside, Benford is accused of arming himself with a kitchen knife and holding it to his former girlfriend’s neck.

With Buzbee detained, Benford’s new girlfriend, Saucedo, is accused of taking the baby from the home, deputies wrote in an email to media. Buzbee’s 8-year-old son was also home at the time.

With the baby in tow, deputies say Benford and Saucedo fled the home. St. Petersburg Police, however, caught up with them around 9:30 p.m. in the area of 2040 16th St. N.

Benford and Saucedo both reside at 1645 24th Ave. N. in St. Petersburg. They were booked into the Pinellas County Jail on armed burglary, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, kidnapping with intend to commit felony, interference with custody and criminal mischief. Both were being held Thursday in lieu of $205,000 bond.

Photos courtesy of the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office

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