Context:

In November 2009, Marcela Borges, her husband Rubens Morais, and their son Ryan faced a harrowing ordeal when four masked gunmen invaded their home in Winter Garden, Florida, demanding a ransom they could not pay. Despite being tortured and threatened for three days, Borges heroically escaped by jumping out of a second-story window after unmasking one of the kidnappers. Her courageous action led to the rescue of her family, though she was injured during the escape. The mastermind of the crime, Bianca Dos Santos, remains at large, while three accomplices were apprehended and sentenced to life in prison. Today, Borges and her family lead a more private life, and their story has been adapted into a Netflix film, 'Terror Comes Knocking: The Marcela Borges Story'.

Dive Deeper:

• Marcela Borges and her family were taken hostage in their Florida home by four armed intruders in November 2009, with the kidnappers demanding $200,000 in ransom, which the family could not provide.

• The family was held captive and tortured for three days, and though Borges withdrew $23,600 to appease the kidnappers, they refused to release the family, escalating the threats and violence.

• On the third day, Borges courageously unmasked the female kidnapper during a confrontation, which prompted her to leap from a second-story window to seek help, despite being shot in the process.

• Bianca Dos Santos, identified as the ringleader, remains at large, while her male accomplices, Oscar Diaz Hernandez, Miguel Diaz Santiz, and Victor Manuel Sanchez, were captured, tried, and sentenced to life imprisonment.

• After the incident, Borges and her husband welcomed a second son and have since focused on leading a private life, with Borges returning to education and their story being featured in a Netflix movie released in 2025.