Dad kidnaps son from mom at gunpoint, then tries to run her over, deputies say
A man and his girlfriend face multiple charges after they kidnapped the man’s son from his mother, then fled to Tennessee, authorities say.
The 26-year-old man and 30-year-old woman, both from Utah, were arrested in Murfreesboro on Tuesday, March 26, after taking the 3-year-old at gunpoint, according to the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office.
The man doesn’t have custody of his son and was visiting him in Rossville, Georgia, about 100 miles away near the Tennessee-Georgia border, deputies said.
McClatchy News isn’t naming the man to protect his child’s identity.
As he was leaving, investigators said he “forcibly kidnapped” the toddler from the child’s mother while holding a gun. The alleged abduction happened in front of the boy’s older sister, deputies said.
The boy’s mother chased after them as the man tried to get away in a van, according to deputies. She yanked open the door in an attempt to save her son.
That’s when deputies said the man’s girlfriend, who was in the car with two other kids, including the couple’s baby, handed him a gun.
“He pointed it at the mother and tried to shoot her but missed,” Walker County Detective Jonathan Camp said in a news release. “He tried to hit her with the car” before driving away.
Georgia authorities notified Tennessee Highway Patrol and gave them a description of the couple’s car. Law enforcement tracked the vehicle to a Shell gas station, then followed it onto Interstate 24 where it was stopped by officers, the release said.
Authorities said they found a gun in the van.
The man faces charges of:
Aggravated assault of the Family Violence Act
Kidnapping
Possession of a firearm by a convicted felon
Possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony
Child cruelty
Home invasion
His girlfriend also faces charges, including kidnapping and conspiracy to commit aggravated assault, according to the sheriff’s office.
The man’s 3-year-old son was returned to a relative, while his girlfriend’s 5-year-old daughter and the couple’s 6-month-old baby were released to the Department of Children’s Services, authorities said.
“This is a very tragic incident that because of the quick action of our deputies fortunately had a happy ending,” Rutherford County Sheriff Mike Fitzhugh said in the release.
The man and woman were taken to the Rutherford County Jail and are awaiting an extradition hearing, authorities said.
This story was originally published March 28, 2024 at 4:34 PM with the headline "Dad kidnaps son from mom at gunpoint, then tries to run her over, deputies say."