Colorado man gets 22 years in prison for kidnapping a woman from Michael Bloomberg’s ranch

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This article was published 06/12/2024 (365 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — A judge sentenced a man to 22 years in federal prison for kidnapping a woman from Michael Bloomberg’s Colorado ranch during what prosecutors said was a failed attempt to kill the media mogul.

Joseph Lee Beecher, 51, had faced up to life in prison after his August conviction by a jury on kidnapping, carjacking and firearm charges. He was sentenced on Thursday by U.S. District Judge Alan Johnson in Cheyenne and ordered to pay $5,306 restitution, according to court records.

The kidnapped woman, a housekeeper at Bloomberg’s western Colorado ranch, was rescued unharmed on the morning after the kidnapping. Authorities found her and Beecher in a motel room in Cheyenne, about 200 miles (320 kilometers) northeast of the Bloomberg property.

Beecher represented himself during his three day trial. He was returned to custody following the sentencing hearing and could not be reached immediately for comment. He was being held Friday at the Scotts Bluff County jail in Gering, Nebraska.

The kidnapping happened in February 2022, after Beecher was dismissed from his job as a hotel handyman in Craig, Colorado. Beecher broke into his employer’s home, stole two rifles including an AR-15 and went looking for Bloomberg, according to officials.

Beecher’s motivation for seeking Bloomberg was unclear but prosecutors said he was “intent” on killing the billionaire.

Later that day the defendant rammed his pickup truck through the gate of the former New York City mayor’s ranch about 70 miles (113 kilometers) from Craig, according to court documents.

But Bloomberg, who bought the ranch in 2020 for $44.8 million, was not there. The housekeeper, who didn’t know Beecher, was abducted at gunpoint and they drove in her husband’s truck first to the Denver area and then to Cheyenne.

Investigators traced the woman’s iPad to a motel where they saw the pickup truck. A SWAT team raided it, freeing the woman and arresting Beecher.

After Beecher said he wanted to represent himself in the case, the court appointed Laramie attorney Thomas Fleener as the defendant’s standby counsel for the trial.

Fleener declined comment on the sentence.