Arrest made in LA caught-on-camera kidnapping of woman who was pistol-whipped, forced into vehicle

An arrest has been made in a broad daylight kidnapping of a woman caught on a neighborhood camera being pistol-whipped and forced into a car outside Los Angeles. 

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department identified the suspect Thursday as William Garcia, 32, of Commerce and said the female victim has been "found safe and unharmed." The department's Major Crimes Bureau (MCB) said the woman is being questioned by detectives for more information regarding the incident. 

On Wednesday, the department said the "primary suspect" had been taken into custody, but investigators were still "attempting to locate the victim."

The suspect, previously only described as a Hispanic man, was taken into custody at approximately 2 p.m. Wednesday and charged with kidnapping and abduction. 

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The suspect's vehicle has been recovered as evidence. The kidnapping unfolded in the City of Commerce Tuesday. 

At approximately 4:20 p.m., a man exited a silver Kia Rio, possibly a 2016-2017 model, in the 2200 block of Couts Avenue in the City of Commerce, the sheriff's department previously said. The male approached the victim, a woman with dark brownish-red hair wearing a black dress and sandals who was running northbound along Couts Avenue.

The woman appeared to be running from the man and attempting to hide, the sheriff's department said. The man, armed with a handgun, allegedly struck the female with the gun and forced her into the passenger side of the vehicle. The vehicle was last seen traveling southbound on Cowlin Avenue.

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The incident was reportedly captured on video by a resident's home surveillance camera. It shows the victim walking while talking on her cell phone when a vehicle pulled up next to her and a man hops out. The man is seen allegedly hitting the woman with a pistol and forcing her into the vehicle. 

"I opened up the window and I yelled to leave her alone. Little did I know, he had a gun in his hand," one witness told KABC-TV. "That's when I called my husband, and my husband came and then he seen him. And my neighbor across the street also seen the gun, and that's when everybody kind of pulled back, and he took off."

A large law enforcement presence was seen Wednesday afternoon outside the suspect's home in Commerce.