Men Are Scary Stay Away: Abducted In Plain Sight

Anna Muth

Professor Iacopelli

ENG 152-03

31 March 2023

Men Are Scary Stay Away Abducted In Plain Sight is a chilling Netflix documentary that tells the story of a young LDS family and the abduction of their young daughter. Watching this was a truly chilling experience. The film starts in a quaint neighborhood in Idaho, where doors stay unlocked and the atmosphere is joyful. Soon the Berchtold family joins the neighborhood, the husband Robert seeming a wonderful addition to the community. Soon enough his infatuation with Jan Broberg becomes increasingly evident. The parents, showing their true naivety continued to allow his time with Jan to increase, eventually leading to her first abduction. Her first abduction led them to Mexico where

All of these combined made for a vivid depiction of the heinous acts that took place. I found the audio recordings of Berchtold to truly disgust me. The way he ruined the childhood of this young girl just to carry out his deluded fantasy is sickening. As I sat and watched the documentary, I found myself in utter disbelief. Multiple times, I was rather angry at the parents passiveness when it came to their daughters safety. Before her abduction they allowed Robert to sleep In Jan’s bed 4 times a week for 6 months. This had me enraged. There was no reasoning whatsoever that could’ve made that action acceptable.

Another appalling part of this documentary was the parents reaction to Jan’s first abduction. Not only did they allow Jan to go with Robert alone, knowing his special attention to her, but after she didn’t return they waited four whole days before alerting the authorities. Supposedly, they waited in an effort to keep the peace with Roberts wife Gail. Sitting in shock, I could not fathom how two loving parents wait four hours, let alone four days to report their daughter missing. This feeling of anger did not diminish as the documentary continued. After Jan was found and returned home, their actions still left me

However, what genuinely surprised me was Jan’s current relationship with her parents. She never once spoke ill of their actions or seemed to hold any bitterness towards their shortcomings. Perhaps it is because she knows, better than any other, the impact of Roberts manipulation. He knew weaknesses and used them, he knew how to get advantage over adults as well as children. I do have my issues with the Broberg parents but overall, my biggest issue is with the sick man himself, Robert Berchtold. While he should have been imprisoned for life due to his actions, I am glad Jan can have rest knowing he is no longer on this earth. Jan’s voice is inspiring and reminds girls everywhere to speak up about their abuse. Women have been forced silent for far too long about assault at the hands of men. In the end Jan has reminded me to be loud, be bold, and be