In 2006, after going through a difficult divorce, Karen Kummerer decided to start dating again and met Joseph Scott Freeman during a night out at a bar in Florida. Their relationship moved quickly. Freeman showered Karen with gifts, constantly showed affection, and eventually moved into her home only a short time after they met.
At first, Karen believed she had finally found someone who truly cared about her. But according to her later account featured in Netflix’s Worst Ex Ever, Freeman’s behavior slowly became controlling and abusive after moving into the house. Karen said arguments became increasingly intense, while her niece, Brenna Randall, noticed a major change in Karen’s personality once Freeman became part of their lives.
The relationship lasted around eight months before Karen finally ended it. However, the breakup only escalated Freeman’s behavior. Court documents stated that he repeatedly harassed Karen, leaving dozens of voicemail messages and refusing to leave her alone. One morning, while Karen stopped at a traffic sign on her way to work, Freeman allegedly appeared from nearby bushes, used a remote key fob to unlock her vehicle, climbed into the passenger seat holding a knife, and ordered her to drive.
Karen later managed to calm him down by pretending she would reunite with him. After escaping safely, she contacted police and obtained an emergency restraining order. She also changed her phone number and replaced the locks on her vehicle — except for the trunk lock.
Two weeks later, while driving to work, Karen noticed the warning light for her trunk had turned on. When she pulled over and walked to the back of the car, Freeman suddenly jumped out of the trunk dressed in black and armed with a knife. He forced her into his jeep and drove away, beginning a terrifying week-long abduction that crossed multiple states.
During the kidnapping, Karen secretly left handwritten notes inside restaurant and gas station bathrooms along the route, explaining that she had been abducted. One restaurant employee eventually found one of the notes and contacted authorities. Investigators later traced Freeman’s location through an ATM withdrawal, and the FBI eventually spotted his jeep traveling on a highway in Mississippi. Police stopped the vehicle and rescued Karen safely.
After Karen was rescued, authorities reportedly found knives, rope, blankets, and drug-related items inside Freeman’s jeep. According to Worst Ex Ever, Freeman was charged with aggravated stalking, armed kidnapping, violating a domestic violence injunction, and probation violations. In 2007, he was sentenced to life in prison after being convicted on all charges. Freeman later died in prison in 2025.
