Tony Lamar White wanted for kidnapping 75 yr old Anniston, Calhoun County, AL woman Betty Cobb who was found duct taped in a closet at the man’s closet. Feared serial perpetrator remains on the loose.
An elderly Alabama woman kidnapped after going out to buy groceries was found bound in duct tape inside her abductor’s closet according to authorities.
Tony Lamar White, 47, was being sought in Monday’s kidnapping of 75-year-old Betty Cobb, whom he followed home as she went shopping, according to the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office.
The wanted man is alleged to have ‘randomly’ followed the woman after going out to buy groceries and then following her to her residence.
The abducted woman left her keys and phone on her bed, while her glasses and some groceries were found in the driveway of her Anniston home according to deputies.
Cobb was discovered later Monday inside a closet at White’s home in Anniston, where she was bound with duct tape, Lt. Falon Hurst said.
Random victim
‘I don’t know how he selected her, but he followed her home from a grocery store,’ Hurst said during a Tuesday press conference.
Investigators said they used security footage from stores White had visited to determine a suspect vehicle, which led authorities to investigate several residences connected to the suspect.
Not immediately clear was what intentions Cobb’s abductor had upon bringing her back to his residence.
Cobb was found within six hours of her missing WBRC reported.
DEVELOPING: Search underway for 47 year old Tony Lamar White. He is a suspect in a kidnapping case. A message from Calhoun County Sheriff Matthew Wade. @abc3340 pic.twitter.com/sUDZqwBrrC
— Bobby Poitevint ABC 33/40 (@BobbyPoitevint) July 5, 2022
Serial abductor possibly linked to open cases
A motive in the kidnapping remains unclear. Cobb was taken to a hospital for observation after being rescued by deputies. She and White did not know each other, Hurst said.
Deputies confirmed White was a stranger to Cobb and the woman never having met the man before. Police now fear the man having perpetrated the crime previously in relation to two open cases from over a decade ago involving similar circumstances and denoted him a potential serial criminal.
White, who remains on the run, may be on foot in the area of Fourth Street in Anniston. He also could be driving a silver Chrysler 300 with a license plate of 11JA702, sheriff’s officials said.
Anyone with information regarding White’s whereabouts should call authorities at (256) 236-6600. He has multiple warrants for his arrest and should be considered dangerous, WVTM reported.