NJ Man Who Kidnapped, Held Woman For Year Gets 11-Count Indictment: AG

BASS RIVER TOWNSHIP, NJ — A grand jury handed additional charges to a man accused of kidnapping a woman in New Mexico and holding her captive for nearly a year, state officials announced Wednesday.

The 11-count indictment gives James W. Parrillo Jr. six additional charges since his February arrest in Bass River Township. The indictment, issued May 3, includes two counts of first-degree aggravated sexual assault — New Jersey's legal term for rape.

"Today we are sending a clear message," said Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin, "that individuals who come forward to report these crimes in our state will be treated with dignity and respect by members of law enforcement committed to thoroughly investigating their allegations and holding perpetrators fully accountable under the law."

Parrillo was arrested Feb. 7 after the victim escaped from a rented room in Bass River Township where both had been staying, according to the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General. The woman told police that Parrillo kidnapped her in February 2022 and held her captive across the country before they reached New Jersey last December.

• Read more: Kidnapping Suspect Who Held Woman For Year Caught In Burlington County

The victim met Parrillo, who she knew as "Brett Parker," at a New Mexico gas station in February 2022, according to the AG's office. She agreed to his request to give him a ride to Arizona. The pair had a consensual relationship for about three weeks until Parrillo assaulted her in California — at which point she felt unable to leave the relationship, authorities said.

Parrillo, 57, sexually assaulted the victim on several occasions and threatened her with injury to restrict her freedom, the AG's office said.

Before the woman escaped, they had been staying at a rented room in Bass River Township with several other people for about two weeks — the longest they settled anywhere since the kidnapping, according to authorities. The victim told police that during a previous visit to a nearby gas station, she noticed a deadbolt on the door and planned her escape.

On Feb. 7, 2022, Parrillo began beating and choking the victim at the house in which they stayed, authorities said. The assault ended when he realized they weren't alone in the house, and she escaped to the gas station wearing nothing but shorts and a shirt in the 42-degree weather, according to state officials.

Once inside, she bolted the door and told the attendant she had been kidnapped, authorities said. Surveillance footage shows Parrillo following her to the gas station and trying to open the door to the convenience store. He left upon realizing it was locked and was arrested shortly after, the AG's office said.

Parrillo is currently detained in the Burlington County Jail. He was charged in February with kidnapping, aggravated assault, hindering apprehension, and criminal restraint.

The man faced several charges since his February arrest, but the state grand jury handed him the following additional charges in the indictment:

• two counts of aggravated sexual assault (first-degree)
• two counts of sexual assault (second-degree)
• one count of criminal coercion (second-degree)
• one count of theft by extortion (second-degree)

If convicted, Parrillo could spend the rest of his life incarcerated. First-degree charges carry a prison sentence of 10-20 years. The kidnapping charge carries a penalty of 15-30 years in prison if he's convicted.

The new charges stem from further investigation by New Jersey State Police and the Burlington County Prosecutor's Office, the AG's office said.