page_title: 1998 kidnapping of LDS missionaries in Saratov, Russia
section_title: Captivity
hierarchical_section_title: 1998 kidnapping of LDS missionaries in Saratov, Russia / Captivity
caption_attribution_description: Русский: Саратов. Общий вид города. English: Saratov - general view of the city.
context_page_description: The 1998 kidnapping of LDS missionaries in Saratov, Russia involved the abduction of two missionaries of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Andrew Lee Propst and Travis Robert Tuttle, on March 18, 1998. One of the kidnappers had a friend invite the missionaries to his apartment in Saratov, Russia where, upon entry, they were hit in the head, driven to a separate location, and photographed as part of the kidnappers' demand for $300,000. A ransom note was left at the house of a local member of the LDS Church. The missionaries were released on March 22 after four days in captivity, without the ransom being paid. It was the first major incident involving foreign missionaries to occur in the "Russian heartland."
context_section_description: Propst and Tuttle were taken to a shed 45 minutes outside of Saratov, Russia, and handcuffed to a coal-fueled radiator so tightly that both suffered nerve damage. While in captivity, the two "played word games, practiced Russian grammar and devised a dream team of professional baseball players." They conversed frequently with the younger man who had kidnapped them, with topics ranging from sports to politics to religion; Propst hoped that forging a friendship might later prevent their captor from being able to kill them. Both Propst and Tuttle had read Dale Carnegie's book How to Win Friends and Influence People and tried using techniques from the book. One of the kidnappers shared his "life story" with the missionaries. Propst later told Idaho Business Review that his captors had been struggling financially, and that that was one of their motivations for kidnapping them. They were fed small portions of food once or twice per day and were given dirty water to drink. Their eyes remained taped the entire time.
  Both missionaries escaped with only minor injuries, including soreness from the handcuffs and bumps from being hit in the head. After being released by their kidnappers outside of the city of Saratov, they found a ride back and called police and church officials. They were then brought to the police station and, under the protection of church officials and two American Embassy Consul officers, stayed in Saratov to help police find their kidnappers. The Mission president at the time, Donald Jarvis, stated that no ransom was paid. Both Propst and Tuttle finished their missionary service in England.
caption: City of Saratov, Russia
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