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Couple kidnapped and repeatedly beaten by woman and man
Abstracted from story by Abbey Soukup, Colorado Springs Gazette
June 12, 2024 — An officer with the Colorado Springs Police Department received a report of a kidnapping at the Arbor Point Apartments in Colorado Springs. The reporting party told police from his bed at Memorial Central Hospital that he and his girlfriend had been kidnapped, held captive for over a day at gunpoint, and repeatedly assaulted.
The responding officer took note of the victim's multiple injuries, including several lacerations on the back of his head, a swollen right eye socket, scratches on his face and arms, bruising on both knees, and a fractured orbital socket, according to arrest records.
The male victim told police that on the previous Saturday evening, June 8th, the male victim and his girlfriend were staying at a friend's residence at the apartment complex along 2503 Hancock Expressway in Colorado Springs.
The male victim told police he and his girlfriend were taken at gunpoint back to another residence at the apartment complex, were separated in different rooms, and continually beaten in the head with the firearm and fists. While neither the male nor female victim were restrained, they were guarded at gunpoint and were told multiple times they would be killed if they attempted to escape, arrest records state.
Both victims told police the group was taking turns assaulting them all the time they were held captive. Additionally, the male victim told police a glass beer bottle was broken over his head, and he was beaten multiple times in the head with a baseball bat.
The female victim described the assault to authorities as being, “beaten like a pinata.” She told police she didn't remember how many times she was struck with the handgun or baseball bat, adding that she had “blacked out,” multiple times amid the assault.
The female victim told police the two were eventually brought outside of the apartment complex and ordered to dig their graves. That's when her boyfriend was able to escape the suspects and get help from authorities.
The male victim told police he fled and hid inside a ditch in an area of dumpsters behind the apartment complex, where he passed out and slept until the following morning. Then he went to a friend's house, who helped him order a rideshare to a nearby hospital, records state.
Police went back to the apartment where the female victim was discovered. Investigators found both of the victim's cellphones and their clothing there.
The male victim told police a group of residents at the complex were upset with him and his girlfriend for reporting Melissa Martinez's boyfriend, Shemor Mitchell, to the police and sent to prison. Of that group, the man initially identified two of the residents involved in the dispute as Linda Guest and Joseary Arizmendi.
The male victim continued, telling the police the group, consisting of Linda Guest and Joseary Arizmendi along with three others, Melissa Martinez, Kathy Arbuckle, and Joshua Pleasant, confronted the couple at their friend's apartment wearing black masks and armed with handguns.
Based on the evidence discovered and victim testimony, Linda Guest and Joseary Arizmendi were arrested for the double kidnapping and assault. The arrest affidavit of one of the suspects responsible in Colorado Springs gave an apparent motive and additional details into the violent interaction.
After further investigation, Linda Guest, Joseary Arizmendi, Melissa Martinez, Kathy Arbuckle and Joshua Pleasant face 17 charges in connection to the incident, including first-degree kidnapping, witness and victim intimidation, first-degree assault, robbery and several violent crime sentence enhancements.
At her hearing on January 25, 2025, Arizmendi entered a plea agreement wherein she pled guilty to one count of second-degree kidnapping with a stipulated sentence of 20 years in the Department of Corrections.
The arrest affidavit of Linda Guest was not available and she is still undergoing a competency evaluation in her case. No information was available about the other two assailants.
Melissa Martinez additionally faces a second open assault case in El Paso County, where she is charged with sexual assault and second-degree assault.
Joshua Pleasant pled guilty on April 7, 2025, and is expected to receive a two-decade sentence.
All five defendants remain in custody and have not posted a bond to be released, according to court records. Guest is now on a no-bond hold, according to court records.
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