Man helps save kidnapped girl, then gives her the reward money
A Minnesota man not only rescued a kidnapped teenager, he then gave her his $7,000 reward. Earl Melchert, 65, was driving by his lakeside property when he saw a female figure in the distance. He immediately recognized her as Jasmine Block, 15, whose face had been all over the news since she'd been abducted from her home 29 days before.
Block had escaped her three kidnappers, and swam across the lake to reach Melchert's house. He took her in until the police arrived. When they presented him with a check as his reward, he decided dinner with Block's family would suffice, and gave them the money instead. "It's the best thing I've ever done," he told The New York Times. "The family needs the money. To me, yeah, that's a lot of money, but they need it way worse than I do."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
