A Newnan man man showed up on a stranger’s doorstep Tuesday night demanding his go-kart back.
But the woman who answered the door had no idea who he was. When she told the man she didn’t know what he was talking about, he put a gun to her head and took her on a wild ride, Coweta County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Toby Nix confirmed.
Randy Lee Moreland, 56, now faces several serious felonies in connection with the alleged abduction. He was charged with kidnapping, aggravated assault, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, obstruction of officer and multiple drug-related offenses.
Deputies say Moreland knocked on the front door of the woman’s New Street residence in unincorporated Coweta around 9 p.m. He insisted that she return a go-kart, but the woman told investigators she’d never met Moreland before and didn’t have his go-kart.
Apparently Moreland didn’t believe her. He ordered the woman into a van at gunpoint. According to deputies, another man who was unknown to the victim was driving the van.
He drove the pair to a convenience store in Whitesburg. When Moreland went inside the mini-mart, he asked the woman if she felt threatened, she told investigators. She conceded that she was in fear and tried to explain to the driver that she didn’t know Moreland and didn’t have his go-kart, according to deputies.
The three returned to the victim’s neighborhood after Moreland got back in the van, and the driver dropped the pair off on Sargent Landers Road.
Sheriff’s deputies eventually got involved after the victim’s friend reported that the woman called her in a frenzy around 9:20 p.m., Nix confirmed.
When officers responded to the victim’s home to check on her, she and Moreland approached from Sargent Landers Road. Deputies noted that the woman was visibly shaken and appeared to be crying.
Deputies used a stun gun to subdue Moreland after he backed away from officers while reaching toward his waistband, according to Nix. A 9mm handgun was found in his pocket along with two smoking pipes that tested positive for methamphetamine, deputies said.
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