Senator's Wife Abducted From Home

Oct. 7, 2003 -- Kathleen Gregg, wife of U.S. Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., was abducted by two men from her home in McLean, Va., today and forced to withdraw money from a bank, police said. She was unharmed and returned home.

Suburban Virginia police said Mrs. Gregg had been out, but returned to her house about 9:30 a.m. ET only to find two men, one black, one white, waiting inside. One of the men drew a knife and demanded cash. Mrs. Gregg apparently told the men she had no money in the house.

The men then drove Mrs. Gregg to a local Wachovia Bank branch, police said, and the black suspect accompanied her inside. Mrs. Gregg asked to withdraw an undisclosed amount of money, and the man grabbed the cash from the teller as she was counting it.

The suspect then ran outside and got into the vehicle driven by the white suspect. The car is described as a silver Chevrolet Monte Carlo with Virginialicense plates.

Mrs. Gregg called police from inside the bank.

Fairfax County police spokesman Sgt. Jeffrey Gossett said the suspects were last seen going north on Route 123 toward Washington, D.C. There was no indication the suspects knew who Mrs. Gregg was, Gossett said.

"Obviously they were after cash, as it appears so far, and she complied with their instructions and fortunately, very fortunately, she's unharmed," Gossett said.

Sen. Gregg's office released a statement saying the investigation was ongoing.

"Her life was threatened and it was a terrifying experience. Thanksto quick decisions made by Kathy Gregg, she is doing fine and outof harm's way," reads the statement.

A similarly brazen crime happened in the exclusive McLean neighborhood last week. In that incident, a woman was putting her two children into a car outside a 7-11 convenience store when the family was abducted by one male at gunpoint and forced to withdraw money from an area bank, police said.

President Bush appointed Mrs. Gregg, 52, in 2001 to the board of directors of the Student Loan Marketing Association. She has also served on the New Hampshire Task Force on Child Neglect and Abuse.

Sen. Gregg has served in the U.S. Senate since 1993. Previously, he was New Hampshire's governor for two terms and served four terms in Congress.

Senator and Mrs. Gregg were guests of President Bush at a State Dinner at the White House on Monday night.

They have two daughters, Molly and Sarah, and a son, Joshua. The Greggs are residents of Rye, N.H.