The man in the center of the story of Kathie Lee Gifford about how Donald Trump came to her aid when her life was threatened was identified.
Richard D. Jones, 65, had made the threat against the then TV guestheer in September 1993 after the authorities said he had tied and raped his aunt and burned cigarettes on her breasts.
Gaston County police officers said at the time of the incident that Jones left with $ 1500 from the house and in his aunt's car.
During the attack he had commented that he would kidnap Kathie Lee because she had a lot of money, “the authorities said.
This ensured that civil servants in North Carolina reached the authorities in Connecticut, where the TV presenter had a house at the time and in Atlantic City.
The police said at the time that they recovered from Jones that contained photos of Gifford. He had left it at his aunt's house.
Gifford emotionally remembered the incident while speaking on stage Steele Show on Friday and revealed that President Trump played a role to play in her safety.
She was ready to organize the Miss American Pageant in Atlantic City when the FBI contacted her about the threat of Jones.
Richard D. Jones, seen here, had made comments during the attack that he would kidnap Kathie Lee because she had a lot of money '
Gifford attends the Reagan Nashville premiere on AMC Dine-in Thoroughbred 20 on August 25, 2024 in Franklin, Tennessee
Gifford had been on his way to the city with her daughter Cassidy, then a newborn, and her deceased husband, NFL legend Frank Gifford.
She remembered: 'The FBI called my husband and they said,' Mr. Gifford, we have a problem. This is a very, very bad person. '
“He comes to get your wife.”
Gifford said that the FBI told her husband about the incident in which Jones was involved and asked them to keep their schedule the same not to give up the criminal.
“Someone told me how she finally got away from him,” she went on. “He left. He stole her keys and told her: “Now I'm going after Kathie Lee.”
She said her husband refused to agree until he made one phone call, and after the FBI allowed him to do this, “he called Donald.”
Gifford said the suspect would have known her location because she always stayed in the Trump Plaza and Casino when she was in Atlantic City.
The now President made sure that her young family would be safe by flying her to the hotel. “And this is why I will love this man all my life,” she said.
Gifford said that Trump intervened when her deceased husband, NFL legend Frank Gifford, was warned by the FBI that she had received a death threat (the three were depicted together in 1995)
Gifford explained that she did not know that Trump came in to protect her and 'had never heard until the other day'.
After her husband called Frank Trump, Gifford claims that Trump replied: 'Frank, you are not worried about it. I have your girls. I have your girls. And don't worry '.
“And so Frank called the FBI back and said:” I called Donald Trump. He says he's going to take care of my wife and my daughter, “said Kathie.
She said that although she was still not aware of the threat to her, she was surprised to be contacted by Trump and told him he sent his private helicopter for her.
Trump did not reveal the reason for the surprise act and invented an excuse that it was “because you had a baby” when she asked him, Gifford said.
“I said:” Donald, women have babies every day. It's no problem. Thank you. But it's not a problem, “she remembered.
“And he goes:” No, congratulations. So happy for you … I send my helicopter for you and your baby and your babysitter. '' '
After making the helicopter ride to Atlantic City, Gifford said she was arriving to discover that she was heavily protected by the Trump security team.
Gifford, depicted with the now-president and First Lady in 2005, said that she will always 'keep' Trump to protect her against the stalker three decades ago
The deceased husband Frank Gifford van de Ster, who died in 2015, insisted on making 'one call' to Donald Trump after she was warned by the FBI, she claimed in a recent interview
“I mean, these guys are major, major, and they are from:” Mrs. Gifford, Mr. Trump wants you to know that we are here for you, “she remembered.
Even when extra security came to her, Gifford said that she did not question their presence too much because she had recently given birth and “had all kinds of things going on.”
“I just never thought of it, you know?” she said. “But he never said a word. Nobody said a word to me. '
She said she had prepared for a week for the parade without knowing the threat against her life, and only realized on the day of the parade when she saw a newspaper head about the suspect who came for her.
When the organizers asked if they reconsider the stage, she said she replied, “Hell no … nobody will scare me.”
Once she came home at Connecticut, Gifford said she was going to a cinema with her son and an FBI agent told her that the suspect had been caught.
“In the middle of the film one of the FBI boys comes by and goes:” Mrs. Gifford, we have this son of AB ****, “she said. “I said:” Thank you very much. '' '
Officials made Jones in a bus station in Lynchburg the day after he made the comments, according to old reports from the Roanoke Times.
In 1993 the police of Gaston County Archie Huffstetler said: 'He had mentioned that he would like to kidnap [Gifford] And get some money. '
According to Jones' locking record, he was convicted of countless charges with regard to the incident, including rape and theft with a dangerous weapon.
He was sentenced to life imprisonment, according to his record, with a total of 51 violations on his record. He is currently time in the Maury Correctional Institution.
