California dad kidnapped in Africa reveals extraordinary details of being drugged, trafficked and tortured

A California missionary worker kidnapped and tortured in Africa for six years has released fresh details about his experience in a new book.“All the Way Home” — released last week — recounts Jeff Woodke’s kidnapping, harrowing captivity and his struggle to rebuild his life after returning home.The 65-year-old from McKinleyville, Northern California, who was held hostage by a West African Al Qaida-linked terror group, is warning others to be wary of the region.The biggest news, opinion and culture shaping California right now.

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Never miss a story Woodke described being beaten, drugged and dragged into captivity after armed men stormed his home in Niger in October 2016.“They just beat the stuffing out of me and drugged me, threw me in their vehicle,” Woodke said, recalling the attack in an interview with The Christian Post.He said the assault left indentations in his skull.Woodke had spent decades working with vulnerable communities in Niger and was nearing retirement when militants arrived at his home in the town of Abalak.He said the attackers chased him as he tried to flee, striking him with rifle butts before a blow to his leg severed his Achilles tendon.Woodke was then stripped and driven into the desert, where he said he was eventually sold between militant groups.“I was trafficked,” he said.“That’s what I was.

I was kidnapped, and I was sold, and I was the property of another human being, or at least they thought I was.”Woodke was released on March 20, 2023, after more than six years in captivity, the Biden administration said at the time.He was taken from Niger to neighboring Mali, where he was believed to have been held by a terrorist network.A senior administration official said Woodke was released near the Mali-Burkina Faso area and that there had been “no quid pro quo” with hi...