A Colorado man will spend decades in prison after authorities said he kidnapped a woman who had stopped to help him after a crash, then forced her through a terrifying four-hour ordeal in her own car.
Shane McSwane, 29, pleaded guilty on June 12 to kidnapping and attempted aggravated robbery, according to the Pueblo County District Attorney’s Office.
A judge immediately sentenced him to two 13-year prison terms, which will be served back to back. That means McSwane was sentenced to 26 years behind bars.
Prosecutors said he must serve 85 percent of the sentence before he can be eligible for parole, meaning he will have to spend about 22.1 years in prison.
The terrifying case began on May 25, 2025, when victim Grace Dotson was in Aurora and witnessed a car crash.
Dotson stopped her vehicle to call 911 and help after seeing the wreck. But authorities said McSwane, who had been involved in the crash, forced his way into her car and kidnapped her.
For the next four hours, McSwane drove Dotson around in her own vehicle, traveling erratically and “in multiple directions” on Interstate 25, according to prosecutors.
Dotson was trapped inside the car as her family tried to reach her. Authorities said McSwane occasionally allowed her to answer phone calls from relatives, who were also terrified as the situation unfolded.
At one point, McSwane stopped at a gas station in Colorado City, according to CBS News Colorado. Inside, he allegedly threatened to shoot a clerk while demanding a lighter.
Deputies with the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office responded to the gas station and soon learned the vehicle matched the one reported in the carjacking and kidnapping.
A deputy later spotted the vehicle on Interstate 25 and attempted to pull it over, but McSwane turned southbound and tried to get away.
A high-speed pursuit followed as McSwane drove into Huerfano County.
Deputies there deployed spike strips, which damaged Dotson’s vehicle. Even then, McSwane kept driving for several more miles.
Pueblo County deputies eventually used a PIT maneuver, while Huerfano County deputies boxed the vehicle in. McSwane was then taken into custody.
Dotson and the gas station clerk were not physically harmed.
The vehicle’s owner later alleged that McSwane had touched her inappropriately during the four-hour kidnapping. He was initially charged with unlawful sexual contact, but that charge and others were reportedly dropped as part of his plea agreement.
The Pueblo County District Attorney’s Office said officials were grateful Dotson survived the ordeal.
“We are profoundly grateful that she is alive,” the office said. “We extend our heartfelt appreciation to our law enforcement partners for their unwavering dedication and heroic efforts to rescue Ms. Dotson.”
