2009 South Windsor kidnapping incident featured on Friday’s ‘20/20’

The ABC news magazine show “20/20” will be airing a story about domestic violence this Friday, Jan. 27, at 10 p.m. The segment will feature interviews with police department staff who responded to the 2009 kidnapping and hostage situation, including Chief Matthew Reed, Sgt. Peter Alix and dispatcher Krista Marchesseault.

The day-long incident began when Richard Shenkman kidnapped his ex-wife in Hartford at gunpoint, drove her to his South Windsor home and held her hostage for hours. She escaped the house and Shenkman continued firing shots from the home, eventually setting fire to the house and narrowly escaping himself. He was recently convicted and sentenced to 70 years in prison. The South Windsor Police Department hopes that the media coverage of this story raises awareness about domestic violence and that resources are available to help victims.

Additional information is available at http://abcnews.go.com/2020/ and the Connecticut Victims Advocate webpage at: www.ct.gov/ova/site/default.asp