By Mila Mendoza March 14, The buzz surrounding this horrifyingly true story has been especially intense for Tologs, as the abducted girl spent three weeks at our very own Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy. Jan was very willing to be interviewed over the phone, to tell me more about her story and to answer some of the questions I had after watching the documentary, most notably about her parents.
In Pocatello, Idaho, Jan grew up in a close family that was very committed to its Mormon faith. He abducted the thenyear-old Jan on Oct. Berchtold told Jan that the mission required secrecy that, if broken, would greatly endanger her family. Jan became convinced that she was in love with this man, and Berchtold completely brainwashed her into buying his story about their mission. The second time Berchtold abducted Jan, in , he took her to Flintridge Sacred Heart, where she became a student for three weeks.
Berchtold told the administration that he was a CIA agent and that Jan was his daughter. He explained to them that Jan may have emotional outbreaks because her mother died in the Lebanon crisis.
I interviewed Jan, who was pleasantly surprised to talk to someone from Flintridge. Jan was eager to talk and seemed comfortable sharing her story.
Broberg loved FSHA. Though she only spent three weeks there, she remembers wanting to be a great student. She felt welcomed on the Hill, and she recalled the nuns fondly, even mentioning Sisters Ignatius and Maria Therese by name. Jan found it easier to pretend that Berchtold was her father than to pretend that she was Catholic instead of Mormon. My real father was a wonderful man and unconditionally loving.
