Los Santos, SA – It’s been four weeks since Los Santos Mayor, Bryn Jones, was kidnapped and held hostage by the infamous The Lost Motorcycle Club. Official details have remained sparse on what exactly went down on the fateful day of April 16. Questions still remain surrounding the motives that brought the assailants to commit such an act and what will come of the situation. In the weeks that have followed gang activity in Los Santos has skyrocketed. The activity seems to be limited to gang-on-gang and gang-on-law enforcement, with few reports of gang-on-civilian action.
In the weeks that followed the kidnapping, Mayor Jones was, understandably, in rare form publicly, taking the time to recover. On Thursday May 4 he finally broke cover, participating in the Star Wars Expedition presented by Matilda Kapow. That Saturday he went public, posting a tweet of himself at Burgershot and making the local rounds. Bryn appears to be in good health, although he admits that he is still in recovery from the incident.
I met with the Mayor at the local Bean Machine near Legion Square and we discussed his return and what, in his eyes, really went down. This is the first time the public has concrete answers on what happened that isn’t from an anonymous source. It’s still a long ways off the full picture, but it’s a start.
As Mayor Jones explains, it all started on a normal day at UwU Café while having a conversation and meal with some usual patrons. That is, until The Lost showed up. Jones estimates there were roughly six Lost members involved, and was able to identify Maverick King and Jon van der Linde among them.
The Lost entered the Café with guns drawn and immediately making threats. Eventually they were able to escort Jones out of the building, while Celeste and Harrison remained inside.
The Lost checked Jones for weapons, taking his gun and taser, as well as forms of communication including his radio and cell phone. Finally, they handcuffed his hands behind his back before putting him into the back of a van.
After capturing Jones, the group, comprised of the van and a few motorcycles, headed directly towards the northwest edge of Los Santos. In the back alley of 7217 Northwest Marathon Ave, at the corner of Northwest Bay City Avenue, the group pulled up next to the rear loading dock and staged Jones in front of a wall for a photo which would later be posted on Twitter.
The back alley of 7217 NW Marathon Ave where The Lost staged the tweet of Mayor Jones
Once the photo was taken, King was ordered to head to the Mission Row police station to relay their demands, while the rest remained with the Mayor in the alley. As our previous anonymous source detailed, King would soon be arrested on the spot after making demands and threats to the Los Santos Police Department at the Mission Row station.
Bryn said he knew when King had been arrested by law enforcement because he could hear the other Lost members talking about it over their radios. Moments later a police helicopter came into view from the east, with at least one squad car not far behind. Bryn was then hustled back into the van, and the group made their way north along the Great Ocean Highway until they reached Chumash.
In his words though, it was “A show of power that went catastrophically wrong.”
The van diverted from the highway onto South Inseno Road in lower Chumash, at which point Jones was tossed from the van, and van der Linde shot Jones in the knee. Jones recalls van der Linde being apologetic before shooting him in the knee, saying “I didn’t want to have to do this.” He described the scene at Chumash as eerily quiet.
30 seconds later LSPD arrived on the scene, and The Lost began leading law enforcement on a pursuit towards Sandy Shores.
The location in Southern Chumash where Jones says he was shot in the knee and released
Jones was left on the scene at Chumash where Officer Heart applied medical care before taking him to Pillbox Hill Hospital for further care and surgery to remove the bullet. Jones explained that Officer Heart saved his life that day thanks to the care he provided.
Jones estimates that the entire ordeal lasted for nearly 30 minutes, nearly half of which was spent at the back of 7217.
Aside from the initial threats at UwU Café and being shot in the knee, Jones says The Lost never made any additional threats. He believes that they never intended for any harm.
As Jones understands it, the whole situation was supposed to act as a message to the LSPD. In his words though, it was “A show of power that went catastrophically wrong.”
He would go on to add that he is still “very pissed” about what happened. He is fed up with the violence that has been on display, and doesn’t condone it, saying he “Won’t put up with it anymore.”
The Mayor couldn’t comment on where exactly things go from here, but it’s clear he doesn’t intend to take this lying down.
With the next round of Mayoral elections coming up, and the end of his current term drawing to a close I asked if he would be running for another term as Mayor. His response was a firm yes, saying he “Still has a lot to give.” He shared that while he has been recovering he has been working to build out the Department of Justice and wants to see that through. “I’m looking for people with experience, and a lust for justice.”
He wants to do more than just the Justice system though. He wants to make good on his original commitment that got him the role of Mayor in the first place, and listen to the people. His drive remains to make Los Santos the place the people deserve. He is already making plans to recognize the great work of the many local business owners of Los Santos.
This continues to be a developing story. Updates will be provided as new information becomes available. If you have any information on this story I can be reached by text message at 520-2878 or email at [email protected]. Any information that may lead to an arrest should be directed to the Los Santos Police Department.
*Full Disclosure: Bryn Jones was provided prior access to this article to ensure the accuracy of the details provided, but has not had any editorial input or provided any form of compensation for this article*
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Chris Barstow-Carson Chris is a freelance reporter. He aims to bring truth to the people through honest reporting of the unknown stories. He got his start in Liberty City where he broke the story of how the city’s biggest factory was dumping chemicals into the local water supply, which led to a formal investigation and a $5 million fine. He looks for the human story wherever it is.
