A delivery boy named Joey Grundle, for Domino’s Pizza in Waldo, Wisconsin, is hailed a hero for noticing a hidden scream from a kidnapped woman asking for help.
He delivered a pie order to the woman’s house when her ex-boyfriend, Dean Hoffman, answered the door. Grundel looked inside and noticed a dark-eyed middle-aged woman standing behind Hoffmann. I noticed her saying the words, “Call the police.”
“I gave him his pizza, and then I noticed his successor was his girlfriend,” Grundel explained. She pointed to a fully visible black eye. She spoke the words, “Call the police.”
Once Grundl was back in his delivery van, he called the police. Police arrived at the house, where Hoffman locked the door, but eventually allowed the police into the woman’s home. Hoffman was arrested as soon as they saw the physical bruises on the woman and she was taken to hospital with her injuries.
Hoffman had come home without her permission earlier that day to try to persuade her to resume a relationship with him. When she refused when he punched her in the face and tied her up with an electric wire.
She pleaded, “If you love me, you’ll let me go,” but he reportedly replied, “You know I can’t do that.” He also threatened to kill them both with a .22 caliber gun he kept in his car. The woman later explained to authorities that she feared for her life.
Grundel was seen on TV the next day wearing a Taylor Swift “Reputation Tour” hoodie and her fans were quick to spring into action, tagging Swift in hero photos.
Once Taylor Swift learned of Grundel’s story, she arranged to meet him backstage at the concert in Arlington, Wisconsin.
“She…knew who I was,” Grundel joked after the gig. “I’m absolutely convinced that Taylor caught me with a cold.”
“It’s been one of the most exciting weeks of my life,” Grundel said. “I’m rightfully emotional and I’ve never felt that way. But heading into the most memorable weekend of my life…I think I can honestly say…I’m better off than I never have been.”
