Victim in attempted kidnapping recounts how she escaped her attacker

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. - A Bridgewater woman's routine jog quickly turned into a terrifying experience after she was attacked by a man attempting to kidnap her.

Two days after the incident, she spoke to Boston 25 News about the horrifying experience and how she managed to escape.

The 37-year-old survivor, who wishes to remain anonymous, said she fought with everything she had. She said it's been nearly 20 years since she last took a self-defense class, but she still managed to do what she had to do because she says her story wasn't going to end that way.

"I'm doing ok, doing as well as I can be I guess," said the survivor. "There's a lot of things I wanted to do but the most important was not let him get me in that vehicle."

It was around 7:30 a.m. on Sunday when she was out for a run on Pleasant Street, when suddenly a stranger got out of his car and tried to kidnap her in what became a violent struggle.

"Unfortunately he grabbed my forearms and that was the moment I was like, 'this is happening, you can't deny this is happening,'" said the victim.

She said her defensive instinct kicked in immediately, and she fought back with all her strength, knowing her life was on the line.

"The next thought, which I'm glad I had was, 'you're not going to let this happen, this isn't how your story ends,'" said the survivor.

Eventually, two Good Samaritans nearby saw what was happening and stopped to help, which she believes scared the suspect away, giving her time to call 911 and grab his license plate.

"I tried to memorize it but I was in a state of mind where that wasn't going well so I had my phone and took a picture of it," said the survivor.

Now, she says she's easing back into running, saying it's not something she's going to stop doing because of what happened.

"I don't want to allow anyone to take that away from me," said the survivor.

She's also sharing this piece of advice she believes turned the odds in her favor.

"Be aware, keep your phone on you, take self-defense classes but I wish I didn't have to say that," said the survivor.

MORE: Police: Man assaulted female jogger in Bridgewater, tried to abduct her

She says she'll forever be grateful for the police and the two people who stopped to help her when she needed it most.

The suspect, Gordon Lyons, is facing several charges and is being held without bail. He was found not guilty by reason of insanity in a 1978 rape case.

Investigators were able to find him in part because of the license plate information the survivor was able to grab.

Cox Media Group