GILES COUNTY, Va. – LATEST
Police say a local woman is safe after a domestic violence case turned into an abduction.
It all played out in the parking lot of a local pizza shop in Giles County on Wednesday around 1 p.m.
The woman’s boyfriend is in jail after a seven-hour manhunt for the pair, according to police.
Facebook helped solve the case, according to the Rick Creek police chief Steven Buckland. He says someone just across the state line in West Virginia saw a post to “be on the lookout", recognized the vehicle and contacted police.
The abduction happened near Pizza Plus on Virginia Avenue in Rich Creek.
The restaurant employees were shocked at what happened at their drive-thru window.
“They open the window and she’s bloody and she’s like, ‘He’s trying to kill me, he’s trying to kill me, please help me.,’” said Brett Larue, Assistant Manager at Pizza Plus.
Larue says his employees tried to help the frantic woman but it all happened so quickly.
“He was after her. (He) bashed her head against the dashboard, trying to get her in the vehicle. I guess (to) get her unconscious and then take her,” Larue said.
The abductor tossed her in a maroon SUV and drove out, as seen in surveillance footage. The SUV circled Pizza Plus twice, and a witness caught a partial tag.
Seven hours later, a neighbor in the Lindside area of Monroe County, West Virginia, about 15 miles away from Pizza Plus, called police after recognizing the car from a Facebook post. It was parked in front of the C & C Diner.
“...It’s a residence above the diner, (we) went in and found the victim and the suspect, separated them, talked to them. The victim...gave us a statement,” Buckland said. “They were on their way back from Beckley, West Virginia. They got into an altercation in the car, and they pulled into the parking lot of Pizza Plus where he told her to get out of the car.”
Police say after she got out, he changed his mind, and that’s what set the assaults and abduction in motion. Witnesses reported seeing the man with a knife. Police did not locate a knife when they found the suspect and victim, but acknowledged the knife could have been ditched somewhere along the way.
Employees say they’re relieved to know she’s OK. They’re shaken up and sorry they couldn’t have done more.
“Even one of the customers ran to the back door with us to try to help, because... it was apparent that this guy was really going to hurt her...” Larue said.
The woman suffered a minor head injury and did not want medical treatment. Police say the woman is in “good condition.”
The suspect is already on probation and was taken into custody for that. He will face felony abduction and malicious wounding charges.
Rich Creek police say more information on this case will be released on Thursday when charges are obtained.
ORIGINAL STORY
A woman has been abducted from Giles County, according to Rich Creek police.
It happened around 1:10 p.m. on Wednesday near Pizza Plus on Virginia Avenue in Rich Creek.
Police say the vehicle used during the abduction is a maroon SUV, possibly a GMC or Chevy with a tag containing the numbers ’0099.' The tag also potentially had the letters ‘PA’ on or near the tag.
The SUV was last seen on 460 West towards Mercer County, WV.
An older white man with gray hair was driving the SUV, according to police.
The woman is in her early 20s, with short brown hair, wearing jeans and a fur coat. Witnesses say she had noticeable injuries to her head and face from the incident.
Anyone who sees the vehicle in question or who has any information about the abduction is asked to call 911.