Wendy could not resist —the Africa home invasion tale!

[kairos]

“ One robber immediately kicked my husband to the floor,” she said. “Another shoved a pistol into my back and started to rock my chair, attempting to pull me from it. He said over and over again, ‘You are coming with us. You are coming with us.’ The intent of the robbers was to kill my husband and to kidnap me. However, thanks to the actions of some courageous, inspired local friends, our lives were spared.”
So does Wendy’s story telling side with truth? She said the gun was shoved into her back and they were forcibly trying to pull her heftiness from a chair so she could be taken hostage. I am not to clear on this but I thought Rusty had a pistol pointed to his head- she said Rusty was to be killed and she as precious cargo to be kidnapped and held as a hostage with the ransom being to cows!
What the hell is going on here- did she one up Rusty and by using the commencement speech to do it?

Just asking
k

[IHAQ]

Here's how Russell M. Nelson tells it...

On one occasion, we were attacked by armed men with malicious intent. They announced their purpose: to kidnap her, and to kill me. After they maliciously molested us in those evil objectives, they became totally foiled. A gun to my head failed to fire. And my wife was suddenly released from their hideous grasp. Then they disappeared as quickly as they had appeared. We were mercifully rescued from potential disaster. We know we were protected by angels round about us. Yes, the Lord’s precious promise had been invoked in our behalf.

https://www.ldsliving.com/When-Angels-S ... rs/s/80645

Just like the guides in the rafting story, Russell M. Nelson fails to mention the courageous local friends who Wendy credits with their good fortune. In Russell M. Nelson's tale it's Russell M. Nelson who is the hero, dramatically saved from harm because God is watching over His special Russell M. Nelson and won't let the gun go off. In Russell M. Nelson's version the gun is at his head and Wendy was suddenly released, the implication being the spirit of God worked on their behalf.

It would be interesting to know how Sheri Dew writes it up in the biography of Nelson.

[Moksha]

It would be interesting to know how Sheri Dew writes it up in the biography of Nelson.

It will have to be larger than life for inspirational purposes.

[IHAQ]

It would be interesting to know how Sheri Dew writes it up in the biography of Nelson.

In the biography (starting page 242) it is Cindy Packard who is the hero, escaping the house with a broken arm and the help of the nanny and summoning help from neighbours. Russell M. Nelson claims to have taken a boot to the face from a large man taking a run up at him and letting him have it full force, but which only resulted in a bloody nose.
"The misfire infuriated the robber, who then backed up a couple of steps, got a run at Elder Nelson to use the full strength of his leg, and kicked him full in the face with his heavy boot."

In the Biography it is noted one of the assailants had an "AK-47 model M assault rifle". I'm struggling to find out how they would be familiar enough to identify the weapon, and references to a "Type M' variant seem to be absent from Google/Wikipedia.

[Physics Guy]

The usual name for this weapon is the AKM, but it is in fact a very common later variant of the AK-47. It's not so implausible that Nelson might have recognised it, or perhaps been told by someone else what it was after he described it. In its day it was the iPhone of rifles.

[kairos]

Wendy said a pistol was pointed in her back, nothing about Nelson’ s dilemma involving a gun.
AK - another robber involved?

[kairos]

Someone must care that the PSR was held with a gun to his head by a black man with a 45 cal or an AK 14–16 or whatever. With the HS help the gun misfired as Rusty screamed and was hysterical ( unlike his near death spiral plane dive where he was as calm as a heroin user nodding off- that is calm). After the misfire the alleged assassin took off out the door like a bat out of Hades. Ten feet away from Rusty and the gunman, Wiley Wendy was nail scratching to keep a grip on a relief society type chair as gunman number 2 was poking WW in middle part of her broad back and yanking her like he was calfing. The gunman said “we are going to take you”.
In the chaos of the misfired gun both alleged assassins
headed for the cover of the African jungle.
In her retelling WW failed to name their hosts for quick action! Also no mention of church secret service or black SUVs.
Definitely something is missing from the story- primarily truth.
k

[IHAQ]

Someone must care that the PSR was held with a gun to his head by a black man with a 45 cal or an AK 14–16 or whatever. With the HS help the gun misfired as Rusty screamed and was hysterical ( unlike his near death spiral plane dive where he was as calm as a heroin user nodding off- that is calm). After the misfire the alleged assassin took off out the door like a bat out of Hades. Ten feet away from Rusty and the gunman, Wiley Wendy was nail scratching to keep a grip on a relief society type chair as gunman number 2 was poking WW in middle part of her broad back and yanking her like he was calfing. The gunman said “we are going to take you”.
In the chaos of the misfired gun both alleged assassins
headed for the cover of the African jungle.
In her retelling WW failed to name their hosts for quick action! Also no mention of church secret service or black SUVs.
Definitely something is missing from the story- primarily truth.
k

Their deliverance was because the Mission Presidents wife, already beaten and with a broken arm, ran out through the garage with the help of the nanny and shouted for help. On hearing her shouts the robbers left. And you're right, Church Presidents travel with security, where were they?

[IHAQ]

President Blair and Sister Cindy Packard are assuring family and friends of about 70 missionaries that they feel what happened in the mission home in Maputo, Mozambique was "an isolated armed robbery" and that they will be "reviewing all security and safety procedures"

Elder Russell M. Nelson and his wife, Wendy, were on Church assignment in that African nation, having dinner with the area president, his wife and the Packards the incident happened.

The Packards also wrote that they feel, "Elder and Sister Nelson were not specifically targeted or that this was any act against the Church. Some have speculated that our guards were involved. They were not."

https://www.ksl.com/article/6679683/mis ... nd-robbery

No mention of the guards in the Nelson's retelling of the incident. Where were they?

The Packards say area and Church Security personnel are examining all safety procedures.

Where were the Church security personnel?

[IHAQ]

Sister Wendy Watson Nelson described the experience Friday during a speech to 3,300 women at the Time Out for Women event in Salt Lake City. The robbery occurred in May at an LDS mission home in Mozambique.

"The four armed robbers had one intention," Sister Nelson said, "to (harm) my husband and to take me hostage."

https://www.deseret.com/2009/11/15/2035 ... ite-attack

In the Sheri Dew biography it's "3 large African men".
In the article mentioned in the post above...

The Packards also wrote that they feel, "Elder and Sister Nelson were not specifically targeted or that this was any act against the Church.

Dew/Nelson in the biography credit Russell M. Nelson's heroic calmness during the incident and how he portrayed it the day afterwards to the people in the mission as the catalyst for Church growth in Mozambique.

...a defining moment, a turning point for the Church in Mozambique. Many members became even more committed to their faith and their covenants. "Something's changed", said Blair Packard. "It's as though the members saw what could happen if they didn't stand up and be a light to others, and they began to stand up more visibly for what they believed." At the time of the Nelsons' visit, there were only districts in Mozambique. Nine years later, there were three full stakes, with the Church growing stronger.

(Insights from a Prophet's Life, page 245/246)

The hero worship from Dew and the God Complex that Russell M. Nelson has, are palpable throughout the book. But then, that seems to be the whole point of the book.