Jan Broberg was Abducted in Plain Sight

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Photo via under the Creative Commons

Helen Hebson, Writer

Jan Broberg was literally abducted in plain sight and experienced the unspeakable. In the documentary Abducted in a Plain Sight, Jan and her family tell the disturbing story of what happened to their family all because of one sick man.

The Broberg’s story is unsettling and started when Jan was 12 years old. Jan lived with her two parents, Bob and Mary Ann Broberg, and her two sisters Susan and Karen. The family lived in Idaho and was a dedicated church going family. Their community was small and everyone knew everyone.

When the Brobergs met their new neighbors the Berchtold family, there was an instant friendship. All of  the kids and the parents got along so well that naturally the two families grew very close. The father Robert Berchtold, was especially friendly and was more connected to the Brobergs than the rest of his family. Robert Berchtold had a strange connect with Jan and was weirdly obsessed with her. Jan was a 12 year old child and Berchtold was a grown man in his late 30s. Their relationship was so strange from the start and gets even more disturbing as the story continues.

Someone watching might think they know what will happen next. Well, they are very wrong. What happens in the rest of the story is much worse than anyone can ever imagine. The documentary does then continue with a sickening detailed account of every thing that occurred. The story is not only told by the Brobergs but from Robert Berchtold’s brother Joe Berchtold and FBI agent Pete Welsh. Hearing from all of the people involved makes this documentary so intriguing but very heartbreaking. 

Abducted in Plain Sight is a documentary that is very upsetting and should only be viewed by an audience who are mature enough to deal with the disturbing details. The documentary is rated TV-14, which means its material is unsuitable for children under 14 years of age.

Jan and her mother Mary Ann both wrote books about their story. They go on book tours and are advocating for victims of rape and abduction. The books and the tour sparked the idea for a documentary. Their story was just too important not to share, and with the help from the documentary director Skye Borgman, it was possible. Sky’s Borgman is also the producer of the documentary, alongside with Emily Kincaid, Stephanie Tobey, and Lissette Vargas. All of these people created an impressive and entertaining documentary.

Abducted in Plain Sight is  a crime documentary that can be viewed on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, YouTube, Google Play Movies & Tv, and Vudo. Audiences interested in the documentary should only watch if they can handle disturbing crime. The documentary is so intriguing and was really well done overall. It incorporated actors in the script as well as the people telling the story. There was such a good display of detail that the viewers were able to see and not just hear about. This documentary is very disturbing and should really only be viewed by mature audiences wanting to learn about unsettling crime. The Broberg family’s courage and love for one another through it all, is an inspiring story not just to victims but to the world.