Mormon Missionaries Released Both Suffered Slight Injuries; $300,000 Ransom Wasn’t Paid

Two Mormon missionaries kidnapped in southern Russia were set free on a country road Sunday, four days after their capture. Church officials said a $300,000 ransom demand was not paid.

Andrew Lee Propst, 20, of Lebanon, Ore., and Travis Robert Tuttle, 20, of Gilbert, Ariz., were kidnapped Wednesday night in the town of Saratov, about 450 miles southeast of Moscow.

Propst’s father, Lee Propst of Lebanon, said Sunday that the kidnappers ambushed the two as they arrived at a private Saratov home for a meeting Wednesday evening.

“As they went in the door, they were hit on the head with a gun or something. Both of them have a bump on the head,” Propst said. His boy also injured a finger while trying to ward off the blows.

Propst said the young men had sore hands from the handcuffs their captors used, but otherwise were not abused. “They’re walking, talking and eating.”

He said a church official didn’t mince words when he called with the news at 2:30 a.m. “They’re free!” Propst was told.

His wife, Mary, began screaming “He’s free! He’s free!” and the household - including the missionary’s four older sisters who had returned home during the ordeal - was soon out of bed. “Everybody was jumping and yelling and screaming.”

In a short conversation with his parents, Propst said Sunday he could not give details because of the continuing investigation. His family said the young missionary did not indicate whether he will be coming home or stay for the duration of his mission.

Sen. Gordon Smith, R-Ore., himself a Mormon, followed the case closely and shared the family’s elation.

“Having shared the Propst’s pain on Friday, I can only imagine the degree of their joy today. I want to express my gratitude to officials of the United States and Russia for the cooperation that was shown in securing the release of these young men,” he said in a statement released from Washington.

“We’re just joyous about it,” said Meldin DuPaix, a Mormon official in Samara, not far from the site of the kidnapping. “It’s just a tremendous response to the prayers and fasting our missionaries have done for the past day.”

Donald Jarvis, president of the Mormon mission in Moscow, said the kidnappers drove them to the countryside outside Saratov and set them free early Sunday.

The two made their way into town and once in Saratov, contacted their local mission leader, Jarvis said.

Richard Hoagland, a spokesman for the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, said the missionaries were in good condition but had minor injuries.

Lee Probst, said each had “a bump on the head” from being struck at the outset of the kidnapping, and Probst had an injured finger from trying to ward off the blows. They also had sore hands from being handcuffed, he said.

The missionaries were taken to police headquarters in Saratov, where they helped officials with the investigation, Hoagland said. Russian news agencies said federal authorities were still hoping to find and arrest the kidnappers.

The kidnappers had demanded a ransom of $300,000, but Jarvis said the money was not paid.