A federal grand jury has indicted two Texas men on charges of conspiracy, kidnapping, and transporting an illegal immigrant, resulting in death.
The charges stem from a January 2023 incident in Charlottesville, Virginia, where a shootout during a ransom exchange led to the death of one of the kidnappers.
Ricardo Franco-Ordaz and Jordan Joseph Perez, both from Texas, were arrested last week and are accused of being part of a larger conspiracy to kidnap multiple victims for ransom. Court documents allege they transported victims from Texas to Virginia, where the fatal shootout occurred.
The scheme involved holding victims captive near Austin, Texas, and demanding ransom from their families.
As part of the scheme, Franco-Ordaz arranged to pick up two victims from an area near the United States-Mexico border and bring them to a house near Austin, Texas. Once there, Ordaz, and others, held both victims against their will and under armed guard, then called and messaged the victims’ family and friends demanding cash in exchange for their release.
Franco-Ordaz exchanged one of the victims in Texas for $5,000 cash, and on January 8, 2023, Perez and another co-conspirator transported another victim to Charlottesville, Virginia, where they arranged to exchange that victim for $10,000 in cash.
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However, when the exchange was set to occur, it was revealed that the full $10,000 was not available. Subsequently, an argument and shootout arose that resulted in the death of one of the kidnappers.
The investigation is being conducted by Homeland Security Investigations with assistance from various local law enforcement agencies.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force operation aimed at dismantling high-level criminal networks.
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