DES MOINES, Iowa — Police say a Des Moines man is behind bars after he abducted his four-year-old daughter Sunday afternoon while armed with a machete.
Duane VanDenHemel, 36, is being held in the Polk County Jail on charges of first-degree kidnapping, first-degree burglary, and violation of a no contact order.
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Sgt. Paul Parizek of the Des Moines Police Department said officers were called to a home in the 1000 block of E. Aurora Ave. around 2:38 p.m. Sunday on a report of a kidnapping. When they arrived, they learned VanDenHemel had kicked in a door to the home, threatened the child’s mother while armed with a machete, and then took the girl from the home.
There was a protective order in place prohibiting VanDenHemel from having contact with his daughter.
Officers saw VanDenHemel’s vehicle in traffic less than 10 minutes later and stopped it near E. 27th & E. University Avenue. He was taken into custody without incident but his daughter was not in the vehicle.