Forest Service employees headed out for field work. They were zip-tied and held hostage for 15 hours

Forest Service employees headed out for field work. They were zip-tied and held hostage for 15 hours The workers were targeted because of their affiliation with the federal government, a local sheriff said - Bookmark Police and crisis negotiators from around the country have converged on a remote mountain campground in Northern California after a father and son allegedly held two U.S. Forest Service workers at gunpoint with an AR-15 rifle and grenades for about 15 hours. Father-and-son duo, Joseph Charles Henrichsen, 49, and Phoenix Henrichsen, 23, have been charged with kidnapping federal employees. The crisis began when a pair of Forest Service employees, who have not been named publicly, headed out Thursday morning for field work in a remote area near Gumboot Lake campground in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest. Around 10:55 a.m., a U.S. Forest Service law enforcement officer notified the Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Office that the workers were zip-tied and being held at gunpoint inside a trailer near Mount Shasta. Using one of the victim’s phones, Joseph Henrichsen allegedly made a call that alerted law enforcement to the incident, warning that he had “live rounds ready” to use against anyone who interfered. That sent off an urgent local response as campers were evacuated and police raced to the area, which is only accessible by dirt roads. The operation eventually swelled to include the Siskiyou and Shasta County Sheriff’s Offices, the California Highway Patrol, the Department of Homeland Security and numerous other agencies, as well as a contingent of local FBI agents and a group from the FBI’s elite Hostage Rescue Team that was flown in from bureau headquarters in Quantico, Virginia. Around noon on Thursday, Sisikiyou County deputies arrived at the lake and began using drones to scout the area for the trailer, which they found around 1:03 p.m. Negotiations with the Henrichsens began just over three hours later and continued through the night, as the captors at one point allegedly warned they had grenades inside the trailer. The White House, FBI Director Kash Patel and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, who oversees the Forest Service, monitored the situation as it unfolded, according to officials. Around 1:50 a.m. on Friday morning, the hostages were released, one then other, with about 15 minutes between each release. The Henrichsens followed and exited the trailer around 2:30 a.m., law enforcement said. “I want to say how profoundly grateful and relieved that we are that our two employees were released safely,” Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz said during a news conference on Friday. “Their wellbeing continues to be our highest priority. We’re staying close to them and their loved ones, making sure they have the support and the space that they need after what they’ve been through.” Brian Tosh, the FBI’s acting special agent in charge of the Sacramento office, praised law enforcement for securing the release and arrest without anyone being harmed. “Crisis situations like this don’t often result in everyone leaving the scene safely,” he said during the Friday news conference. “It was probably the smoothest thing that I’ve seen in many years,” added Sisikiyou County Sheriff Jeremiah LaRue. Officials found an AR-15 assault rifle and knives in the trailer. Police continue to investigate what motivated the alleged kidnapping. Shasta County Sheriff Michael L. Johnson told The New York Times the Forest Service workers were targeted “specifically because of their affiliation with the government.” He added that the elder Henrichsen had been known for years to make intense complaints about the federal government. Anti-government sentiment has long flourished in the Shasta region, and some residents have pushed to succeed from California and form a new state, citing complaints with leaders in Washington and Sacramento. A person named Joseph Charles Henrichsen was charged in 2022 with a hate crime in Bellingham, Washington, on allegations he threw fireworks and walked with a gun around a neighbor’s property, according to records obtained by The Sacramento Bee. The case was later dismissed after a psychologist determined Henrichsen likely lacked the capacity to understand the proceedings or aid in his defense. It is unclear if Joseph and Phoenix Henrichsen have secured legal representation and The Independent was unable to contact them for comment. State and Sisikiyou County jail records do not yet indicate where they are being detained. If convicted, they face a maximum penalty of life in prison and a $250,000 fine.