United States Attorney Randolph J. Seiler announced that a Sioux Falls, South Dakota, man convicted of kidnapping was sentenced on Nov. 14, 2017, by U.S. District Judge Karen E. Schreier.
Jon Henri Bryant, Sr., age 61, was sentenced to 30 years in custody, followed by five years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $1,000 in restitution to the victim, and $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
According to the court documents and evidence presented to the Court over a two-day sentencing hearing, on Oct. 25, 2016, Sioux Falls Police Officers were dispatched to check on a report of a male and female fighting, which derived from a mobile phone call. During the call, dispatch overheard a male and female arguing in the background. The phone owner, the victim in this case, resided in a residence near the area at which the call was made, where Bryant hid in the victim’s garage to confront her upon her return to the residence. During the initial confrontation, Bryant punched the victim in the face and forced the victim into the trunk of her vehicle.
Based on the victim’s statements made during the call and while inside the trunk, dispatch was able to provide officers with Bryant’s identification, a vehicle description, matching the make, model, color, and license plate number registered to the victim. The victim also reported to 911 that Bryant was going to kill her. Subsequently, the car stopped and Bryant took away the victim’s phone. Approximately eight minutes into the victim’s call and into the process of pinging the victim’s mobile phone, the phone was powered down.
During the commission of the offenses, Bryant traveled into Minnesota and later re-entered South Dakota, parking the victim’s car at a rural residence located in Garretson, South Dakota. At this point, Bryant removed the victim from the trunk and placed her in the passenger seat, where Bryant then strangled the victim to unconsciousness.
Meanwhile, responding law enforcement officers arrived near the residence and noticed the victim’s vehicle parked near a building on an abandoned farmstead. A perimeter was established and officers began to deploy towards the victim’s vehicle. After setting up the perimeter, Bryant noticed the approaching officers, and engaged them in a pursuit on the farmstead. Officers gave several commands, but Bryant continued driving erratically into adjoining fields. In the midst of the chase, the vehicle came to a stop where Bryant was actively assaulting the victim. The chase again continued until law enforcement personnel were able to stop the vehicle. At the scene where the vehicle finally stopped, officers found a roll of duct tape and a roll of electrical tape that Bryant retrieved from his car during the onset of the kidnapping. During the sentencing hearing, the Court found that Bryant’s kidnapping would also be deemed as an attempted murder.
The investigation was conducted by the Sioux Falls Police Department, the Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the U.S. Marshal’s Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeremy R. Jehangiri prosecuted the case.
Bryant, who was in custody during the pendency of the court proceedings, was immediately returned to the custody of the U.S. Marshal’s Service.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
