PHILADELPHIA — The Charles City County man accused of abducting a woman off the streets of Philadelphia was indicted Thursday on a kidnapping charge. Delvin Barnes would face a life-prison sentence if convicted of the crime.
Barnes was moved from Virginia to Philadelphia on Tuesday, ahead of what was supposed to be a Wednesday arraignment. That arraignment was delayed.
Barnes is accused in the November 2 abduction of Carlesha Freeland-Gaither.
Security video showed someone grabbing Freeland-Gaither off the street in Philadelphia and throwing her into a car. Family members identified the man in the video as Barnes and police used GPS put in Barnes’ car to track him down in Maryland.
After his arrest, investigators in Charles City County, Virginia said they had been looking for Barnes since early October. He was brought back to Virginia and charged with abduction, forcible rape, malicious wounding with a chemical and other charges related to the early October disappearance of a 16-year-old girl from Richmond.
That girl managed to escape after two days with Barnes, walked two miles, naked and burned, into a business to seek help.
The Richmond teen’s aunt called Barnes heartless.
“He don’t have no empathy, nothing in there,” she said.
Investigators said Barnes burned the girl’s clothes, threw bleach and gas on her, dug a hole in his yard, and asked her how she wanted to die. He also showed her pictures of other girls he said he abducted, according to police.
“They say he might have done some more stuff,” the girl’s aunt said.
Police are investigating that possibility and urging other possible victims to come forward.
