Convicted Felon Arrested After Armed Kidnapping Attempt on Woman, 74, at PSL Church

A Sunday morning church service nearly ended in abduction when a North Miami man allegedly grabbed a 74-year-old woman at gunpoint in the parking lot of First United Methodist Church on Southwest Prima Vista Boulevard in Port St. Lucie. Two bystanders' swift intervention stopped him from forcing her into his vehicle.

Jose Tsu Zamora, 64, faces five felony charges including attempted kidnapping with a firearm and aggravated assault and battery of a person over 65, the Port St. Lucie Police Department said. He is being held at St. Lucie County Jail on a $745,000 bond.

The attack unfolded at 10:49 a.m., police said. Zamora, who previously had a romantic relationship with the victim, had an active injunction prohibiting any contact with her when he approached her in the parking lot, grabbed her by her arms and attempted to force her into his vehicle, the arrest report states.

Two witnesses intervened directly, confronting Zamora and ordering him to release the woman. During that confrontation, Zamora displayed his handgun before retreating to his vehicle and fleeing the scene, police said. Church surveillance footage captured Zamora pursuing the victim through the parking lot and physically restraining her, according to public records.

The investigation also revealed Zamora is a convicted felon legally barred from possessing firearms or ammunition, adding a sixth felony charge to those he already faces.

Port St. Lucie Police, working with the U.S. Marshals Service, located Zamora at a residence in Hialeah that same evening. He was taken into custody without incident.

No court date was immediately available. The investigation is ongoing, officials said.

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