Butler woman describes torture at hand of 'predator'

Nancy Bonnett was thrilled a man was interested in buying her Butler County home. That thrill quickly changed to fear when the man handcuffed, gagged and blindfolded her at gunpoint and abducted her on Oct. 25, 1985.

"He said very calmly, 'You are being kidnapped,' " Bonnett said. "It was like a dagger of ice. I was frozen."

The 20 hours she spent as Gary Robbins' captive included what he called "torture sessions" with a bullwhip embedded with nails, and other devices.

"He would say, 'You are being tortured to death, and you will die in pain,' " Bonnett, 74, of Butler told a crowd of about 200 people Friday on the first day of the two-day "Predators and Their Prey" conference, which the Cyril H. Wecht Institute of Forensic Science and Law at Duquesne University is hosting.

Robbins took Bonnett to a rural Butler County embankment, covered her face in duct tape and pushed her off the 50-foot drop. The impact broke some of the tape so she could breathe until a hunter found her and rushed her to the emergency room.

"I was already planning how I would help find that man," said Bonnett, who rarely makes public appearances. "I was not angry, bitter or vengeful. I wasn't worried about feelings. I was focused on finding this man."

Bonnett worked with Allan Pass, a Western Pennsylvania forensic psychologist who has assisted law enforcement, to help with a criminal profile of the suspect. State police caught up with Robbins in 1988 when he attempted to abduct a Somerset County woman, shot her in the face and fled. She called her husband, a state trooper, and when police pulled Robbins over, he shot and killed himself.

Robbins was linked to multiple victims in a 10-state crime spree and was one of the predators Pass discussed during his presentation on predator behaviors and profiles.

"There's a pattern and specific core behaviors, but when you bring a surviving victim in, it does personalize it dramatically," Pass said.

Members of a Keystone Oaks High School forensic class who attended the morning session said it was shocking to hear about Bonnett's experience.

"I was surprised she could speak so freely," said Logan Chettle, 17, of Dormont. "I was about to start crying."

Experts will discuss online predators, polygamous sect leaders and elder sexual abuse, among other topics, at the conference today, but Bonnett's story was important to help give insight into a predator, said Ben Wecht, program administrator of the institute.

"It's very important to add them to the mix so we can get the very personal, visceral perspective on the mind and actions of a perpetrator," Wecht said.