MAYS LICK, Ky. — An 83-year-old woman is now home safe after the Mason County Sheriff's Office said she was kidnapped by a former caretaker on Tuesday.
The sheriff's office said deputies responded to the home of Gail Crane in May's Lick after friends reported they couldn't find the woman at home.
"It's a sad situation all around. One thing I would encourage people to do is to just check on their neighbors," Mason County Sheriff Ryan Swolsky said. "We have a lot of elderly neighbors, or a lot of elderly citizens that live alone in their homes, and we just need to just keep tabs on them."
When deputies could not locate Crane, they began a missing person's investigation coordinated with Mason County Emergency Management and Buffalo Trace Search and Rescue, the sheriff's office said.
WATCH: What we know about the kidnapping case of an 83-year-old Mason County woman
During the investigation, deputies identified Rita Lang, the 83-year-old's former caretaker, as a "person of interest."
"Lang became a person of interest immediately," Swolsky said. "We had information that she was Ms. Crane's caretaker, and she was recently let go from that position a few days prior to this event."
Swolsky said Lang had been working for a Kentucky-based home health care company. When he contacted Lang, Lang told him Crane was not with her.
"There were some inconsistencies," Swolsky said. "In her statements, it was kind of unclear where she was and what she was doing."
As it turns out, Swolsky said, authorities were essentially tipped off to Crane's disappearance because of Lang herself. On Tuesday, he said she called one of Crane's neighbors to check on the 83-year-old because she said she was worried and didn't know where Crane was. That neighbor couldn't find Crane and contacted law enforcement.
Deputies determined Lang was traveling in Frankfort; as Mason County deputies canvassed Lang's property, they contacted the Frankfort Police Department to help locate Lang. Frankfort police quickly found Lang's vehicle and attempted to perform a traffic stop on her, but Lang refused to stop, according to the Mason County Sheriff's Office.
A vehicle pursuit began, and Lang "eventually" stopped her vehicle, the sheriff's office said.
Inside, the sheriff's office said, Frankfort police found Crane with minor injuries.
Crane was taken to a local hospital, was released and has since returned to her home in Mason County, where she is receiving care and assistance, Swolsky said.
"She's doing well now, and now we just want to move on," Swolsky said. "And hopefully we can get this all resolved."
Swolsky said the sheriff's office is investigating possible motives, but declined to share any working theories with us at this time.
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"I commend the deputies with the Mason County Sheriff's Office and all of our neighboring agencies, especially the Frankfort Police Department, for jumping on this so quickly," he said.
We spoke to Lang's landlord Thursday.
"I'm just shocked about the whole thing," Randy Kirk, Lang's landlord, said. "I am definitely, definitely wondering what's going on."
Kirk said he also knows Crane because he takes care of her yard.
"I've known them to just always be good friends. Rita cared about Ms. Gail, taking her food when she needed it," Kirk said. "Rita would make sure that she had things to make sure she's comfortable."
Kirk said he was not sure why they ended up in Frankfort. He said much of what is public about the case has left him with more questions than answers.
"The whole situation raises eyebrows," he said.
Lang was arrested in Franklin, where she faces several charges; she has also been charged with kidnapping in Mason County. The sheriff's office said additional charges are likely to come.
Lang is scheduled in court in Mason County on Monday.
