In the early 1970s, Jan Broberg was kidnapped by her own next door neighbour. Twice.
The man who took Jan was no stranger, however. In fact, it was the man’s close relationship with 12-year-old Jan’s parents that led to her imminent abduction.
Now, new Netflix documentary Abducted In Plain Sight is chronicling the chilling story of how Robert Berchtold abducted Jan right under her parent’s eyes.
Jan’s abductor, Robert Berchtold, appeared to be any ordinary man from the outset.
He was a father-of-five, a loving husband and a good, loyal friend to Jan’s parents.
But it was this charismatic side of Robert that shielded Jan’s parents Bob and Mary Ann Broberg from the brutal truth.
Robert’s charming ways were what ultimately convinced Jan’s parents to allow a paedophile continued access to their innocent child.
Watch the full trailer for Netflix’s Abducted In Plain Sight here. Post continues below…
After all, he was a friendly man with kids and a wife of his own. What harm could he do?
On October 17, 1974, Robert abducted Jan from her family home in Pocatello, Idaho, fleeing to Mexico in a campervan.
Hiding away in Mexico for weeks, Robert attempted to brainwash Jan into believing that she was an alien, and that she needed to conceive a child with him before she turned 16 to save her people on her home planet.
For days while Jan was in Mexico with Robert, Jan’s parents did not call the police to report their daughter missing. They trusted their friend and neighbour.
Five weeks later, Jan was returned to her parents.
Keeping her promise to ‘the aliens’ to keep what happened on the trip a secret, Jan told her parents nothing.
Although Robert was initially arrested for kidnapping Jan, he was soon released. The father-of-five blackmailed the Brogberg family to sign legal affidavits that claimed they’d given him permission to leave the country with their young daughter.
It was Jan’s admission and her parent’s trust in Robert that ultimately led to her eventual second abduction.
