The Biggest Child Kidnapping In U.S. History

In July 15, 1976, 26 schoolchildren and their bus driver were abducted in Chowchilla, California, by three armed men. The kidnappers hijacked the bus, drove it to a remote area, and transferred the victims into a buried moving truck in a quarry, where they were held for 16 hours. The kidnappers' plan was to demand a ransom, but the victims managed to escape by digging their way out while the kidnappers were asleep. The suspects were later captured, convicted, and sentenced to life in prison. The incident remains one of the largest kidnapping cases in U.S. history.