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Elizabeth Shoaf tried everything to get away after being kidnapped by 36-year-old Vinson Filyaw, and she finally succeeded when she used his phone to text her mother.

Elizabeth Shoaf was kidnapped by Vinson Filyaw when she was fourteen years old, but she was able to outwit her kidnapper and escape. You can read this article for more info: https://theblogofkatie.com/how-elizabeth-shoaf-saved-herself-by-sending-a-message/

Vinson Filyaw, a rapist, imprisoned 14-year-old Elizabeth Shoaf in an underground bunker for 10 terrifying days in September 2006.

Shortly after getting off the school bus, Shoaf was "arrested" by Filyaw, who had pretended to be a police officer.

But Shoaf was able to turn the tables on her kidnapper despite the dangerous circumstances she was in. By acting as though she was in love with him, she gained his trust and took advantage of his vulnerability.

One night, while he was asleep, Shoaf texted her mother, "Hello mom," using Filyaw's phone. I'm in the pit where the large trucks enter and exit, which is across from Charm Hill. A bomb is present. Make a police call.

She saved herself by guiding the cops straight to the bunker.

Vinson Filyaw was "a person who harbors resentment."

Vinson Filyaw had a lot of problems. After his mother remarried and his father passed away when he was still a baby, he told NBC's Dateline that he had "pretty much a normal family."

Nothing traumatic, really. There is nothing that you would assume would cause someone to act irrationally, psychotically, or in such a manner," he stated.

As a youth, Filyaw was a Boy Scout who cherished the outdoors and camping.
In addition to his love of martial arts and the Rambo films, he also developed a passion for alcohol, which medical professionals later said was harming his brain.

Filyaw saw his connection with Cindy Hall as his salvation from alcoholism because he was essentially in the grips of the disease before he reached full age. Filyaw started working construction to support Hall, a single mother of three, and the kids, with whom he claims he had gotten close, particularly the one he named Peanut.

He claimed that he and she were quite close. "You know, we were inseparable..

Peanut then reported Filyaw's sexual abuse of her to her teacher at the end of 2005. Police collected information, spoke with Filyaw's coworkers, and verified Peanut's account. Every indication was that Filyaw would end up behind bars.

Filyaw's animosity at Peanut and the police was evident from his Dateline interview.

He claimed, "Kershaw County [Police] never came and questioned me." Rather, they interrogated all of my coworkers. They never entered the house, you know.