Heiress who was brainwashed to help kidnapping terrorists rob banks with machine guns
dailystar.co.ukkidnapped by a terrorist organisation was later jailed for 25 years after participating in an armed bank robbery.Patty Hearst, 67, is the granddaughter of media mogul, William Randolph Hearst.She first became known on February 4, 1974, when as a 19-year-old, she was kidnapped by the Symbionese Liberation Army (SLA).
The SLA was an extremist left-win organisation that committed bank robberies, murdered police officers and civilians, and attempted bombings, among other violent crimes in the US.The group is considered a terrorist organisation by the FBI and other American law enforcement agencies.The SLA had chosen to kidnap Hearst to increase the news coverage of the incident – due to her family's media ties – in order to negotiate the release of two of their members who had been captured by authorities.Two months after her abduction, questions concerning Hearst's ties to her abductors arose after Hearst declared her allegiance to the SLA.She also denounced her family and was seen carrying an automatic weapon during an SLA bank robbery in San Francisco on April 15.She was eventually found and arrested 19 months after her kidnapping on September 18, 1975.At the time of her arrest, Hearst's weight had dropped to just 87lbs (40kg) and she was described by psychologist, Margaret Singer, as a "low-IQ, low-affect zombie".Shortly after her arrest, signs of trauma were recorded, with her IQ measuring at just 112, compared to prior from her ordeal when it was 130.There were also huge gaps in her memory, she was smoking heavily and experienced frequent nightmares.At her trial, however, the prosecution suggested that Hearst had joined the SLA of her own volition.To stay up to date with all the latest news, make sure you sign up for.
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