Father and Son Indicted for Kidnapping Two Forest Service Biologists in Shasta-Trinity National Forest

Indictment:

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - A federal grand jury returned a seven-count indictment today against Joseph "Charles" Henrichsen, 49, and his son, Phoenix Henrichsen, 23, after a 15-hour hostage crisis in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest that drew an extensive and coordinated response from local, state, and federal law enforcement, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.

The defendants, temporary residents of Siskiyou County, are charged with two counts each of kidnapping a federal employee. Charles Henrichsen faces additional charges including two counts of assaulting a federal employee with a deadly weapon, two counts of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence, and one count of assault on a federal officer.

According to court documents, on July 16, 2026, two U.S. Forest Service employees were conducting routine environmental work near Gumboot Lake Campground when Charles Henrichsen approached them with an AR-10 semiautomatic rifle. He bound their hands, and with Phoenix's help, forced them into a remote trailer where they were held for the next 15 hours. Charles called multiple individuals stating that he had taken two federal employees hostage and was armed.

The incident triggered a massive multi-agency response. Officers and agents from across the country converged on the remote Siskiyou County location. After hours of negotiations, FBI crisis negotiators secured the safe release of both victims and the surrender of both suspects. The defendants are in custody pending trial.

The FBI conducted the investigation with assistance from the U.S. Forest Service, Homeland Security Investigations, the Bureau of Land Management, the Siskiyou County Sheriff's Office, the Shasta County Sheriff's Office, the Mt. Shasta Police Department, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the California Highway Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Campbell is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, both defendants face a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison and a $250,000 fine. If convicted of the additional charges, Charles Henrichsen faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for assault on a federal employee with a deadly weapon, a mandatory minimum sentence of fourteen years in prison (to run consecutive to any other sentence) and a $250,000 fine for brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence, and up to one year in prison and a $100,000 fine for assault on a federal officer. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.