FBI gets new lead in Ripken investigation

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ARBERDEEN, Md., July 31 (UPI) -- FBI officials say they caught a break in the investigation of the kidnapping of retired baseball star Cal Ripken Jr.'s mother outside her Arberdeen, Md., home.

FBI spokesman Special Agent Richard Wolf said Monday information based off of grainy images of a man suspected of abducting Violet Ripken, 74, will lead to an arrest, The Baltimore Sun reported. She was returned to her home the next day unharmed.

Aberdeen police released two images of a man in his mid-30's to mid-40's they believe to be Ripken's kidnapper. Police continue to receive tips from the community.

"I think everybody kind of took it personally," Aberdeen City Councilwoman Sandra Landbeck said. "[Mrs. Ripken] is such an integral part of the community."

Ripken is the wife of late Baltimore Orioles manager Cal Ripken Sr. and the mother of baseball players Billy Ripken and Cal Ripken Jr., who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2007.