Saved by the cell

last updated 8 January 2015

Lugoff, S.C.

A 14-year-old girl used mobile-phone text messages to lead police to the underground bunker where she was being held captive, South Carolina police said last week. Vinson Filyaw, 36, faces sex, weapons, and kidnapping charges for luring Elizabeth Shoaf to an underground bunker and holding her there for 10 days. Shoaf escaped by grabbing Filyaw’s mobile phone after he fell asleep and sending a text message to her mother that read in part, “Hey Mom. I’m being held in a hole.” Her parents notified police, who traced the call to Filyaw’s property. He was found nearby and arrested.