It was in 1973 that the then 16-year-old John Paul Getty III was kidnapped in the Italian capital of Rome where he lived at the time. The kidnappers are said to have dragged him into a car and shortly afterwards demanded 17 million dollars from the wealthy grandfather John Paul Getty I so that the family would see the boy alive again.
But the grandfather, who was careful about his money, refused.
– It was probably partially rooted in the fact that he was not an ordinary grandfather who devoted all his time to his grandchildren, he must have met them once. The second was probably due to the fact that he was very concerned about the money he had earned, says Leif GW Persson.
Ear was sent by post
Another reason why the elder Getty did not agree to pay the ransom was that he himself, as well as the police, was convinced that the kidnapping was a fabrication by the 16-year-old himself in an attempt to strengthen his own coffers – and would the grandfather agree to pay the boy, soon all 14 grandchildren would start demanding money from him.
But time passes and John Paul Getty III is nowhere to be seen, not until an unexpected letter arrives in the mail sent from Italy.
– The kidnappers cut off his ear and sent it to his mother, something that made the grandfather soften a little, says GW Persson.
But he would not agree to pay $17 million. After long negotiations, it is finally agreed that the kidnappers will receive three million dollars. Within the family, it is also agreed that the grandfather will be responsible for two million dollars and the 16-year-old’s father for the rest.
– He offered to pay two million dollars himself because he could deduct it from the tax, while the kidnapped grandchild’s father had to pay the remaining million that he had to borrow from his father and also pay interest on, says GW Persson.
Two were convicted of the kidnapping
In the end, John Paul Getty III is released from the kidnappers. According to Leif GW Persson, it is an interesting case because there were many people involved in the kidnapping, and because the operation was set up as a kind of business deal.
– You had bought shares in this operation and from the beginning you were convinced that there would be no problems. But then time goes by and you don’t get any money and the shares in the criminal operation are sold on to others and eventually end up in more hard-nosed hands – and that’s when the victim’s ear comes off, he says.
– In the end, about ten suspects are caught, and two of them are sentenced to long sentences.
Had a stroke
Although John Paul Getty III survived the kidnapping, he suffered a stroke, aged just 25, after taking an overdose.
He then died in 2011, aged 54, after spending half his life in a wheelchair.
John Paul Getty III was one of 14 grandchildren of the wealthy John Paul Getty I who founded the Getty Oil Company in 1942.