Man hides in back seat of car, kidnaps pair to run drug errands, police say

Charles Allen Green arrested in similar crime in March

Alachua County Sheriff's Office booking photo of Charles Green

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – A man is accused of kidnapping and robbing two people in Gainesville this weekend, although the victims were able to escape from their captor and report the situation to police, officers said.

At about 12:20 p.m. Saturday, two people parked their car in the Publix parking lot at 1302 N. Main St., the Gainesville Police Department said Sunday. 

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When the two returned to the car and got inside, they found a man lying down in the back seat. He demanded money from the pair and ordered them to drive out of the parking lot, police said.

The man threatened the victims and said he could “do great bodily harm,” an arrest report reads.

The two were scared that the man would hurt them, so they complied, according to a news release.

The man, who has since been identified as 49-year-old Charles Allen Green, directed the victims to three locations, police said. At the first two stops, Green demanded the car keys as he exited the vehicle, so the two people couldn’t leave, according to authorities.

At the third location, 3845 NE 15th St., Green forgot to take the keys, so when he got far enough away from the car, the victims escaped, they told police.

Officers searched all three locations, but couldn’t find Green.

About 2:15 p.m. Saturday, in the area of 800 N. Main St., the victims met with police to report what had happened to them.

Later in the day, just before 10:35 p.m., officers received a call from a man who said that he had been approached in the Oaks Mall parking lot.

Police said it was Green who had approached the man, saying that his wife was in labor and he needed help.

The man agreed to give Green a ride, but instead, Green directed the driver to a few different locations, and the man started to suspect that Green was buying drugs.

The man finally dropped Green off in the 2000 block of SW 34th Street and called police.

The investigation revealed that Green got a ride to the area of SW Archer Road, and that’s where an officer found a man matching his description, police said.

Green was identified, arrested and taken to police headquarters for an interview, where he admitted to being in all of the locations, but claimed the activities had all been consensual.

He now faces two counts of kidnapping and robbery.

“According to the defendant, he gets rides from people and asks them to drive him around so he can purchase cocaine quite frequently, and has been addicted to cocaine for approximately two years,” the arrest report said.

Gainesville police most recently arrested Green on March 7. In that case, he was accused of exploiting a disabled person. He got into a car with the person and forced him to drive around so that Green could buy drugs.