Kidnapping Charges at a Middle Smithfield Rental

A British man is charged with kidnapping after state police say he held a man captive at a short-term rental in Middle Smithfield Township, where the victim says he was wrapped in plastic and hit with a hammer, the Pocono Record reported Friday.

What Happened. According to the criminal complaint, as reported by the Record, Pennsylvania State Police in Stroudsburg got a call the morning of Sept. 23 from a Robin Lane resident: a man was at the door, bleeding from his ear, saying someone was trying to "take him." Later that morning, a second Robin Lane homeowner called about what a surveillance camera had caught at a short-term rental on the street: a man gesturing as if his throat had been cut and mouthing "nine one one."

Inside the Rental. Troopers found a U-Haul in the driveway and, while searching the house for other victims, "large amounts of blood" throughout it, along with cleaning supplies, plastic wrap, a suitcase, bedding and towels. At the hospital, the victim had multiple deep cuts on his face and told troopers his ankle had been hit with a hammer. He gave troopers few details, the complaint says, but confirmed there were two pounds of marijuana in the suitcase. Before he was released, he told a trooper he had been "wrapped and tied up in plastic" and told he would be held there for two days. A search warrant turned up bloodstained clothing, a couch cushion cover, a mop head and three more pounds of vacuum-sealed marijuana.

The Arrest. New Jersey State Police stopped the BMW being driven by Joshua D. Billson, 31, who was identified by his United Kingdom passport and, according to the complaint, was covered in blood. Troopers say the car held a bloodstained hammer, knife, jacket and hat, plus bolt cutters, wire cutters, a metal baseball bat and a box cutter.

The Charges. Court records show Billson, 31, faces two first-degree felony counts of kidnapping, one of them kidnapping for ransom and the other kidnapping to facilitate a felony, plus a second-degree felony count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and misdemeanor counts of possessing an instrument of crime and tampering with evidence. The complaint was filed Sept. 25 before Magisterial District Judge Jamie Levy in Marshalls Creek, and the docket lists the case as awaiting a preliminary hearing, with no hearing date set. The court record does not say whether he has been returned to Pennsylvania. We'll pass it along as soon as we have it. He is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Why It Matters Here. Back in June, we wrote about two violent cases tied to short-term rentals in Coolbaugh Township and Middle Smithfield, and about House Bill 2303, the bill that would give counties a rental registry, a local contact reachable around the clock and baseline safety standards. It's still sitting in committee: LegiScan shows no action on it since it was referred in March.