Abducted Philadelphia nurse found alive, suspect in custody

Carlesha Freeland-Gaither was found safe in Maryland. Her abduction was captured on a Philadelphia surveillance camera Nov. 2.

A Philadelphia nurse whose violent abduction was caught by surveillance video was found alive Wednesday in Maryland and her alleged captor was taken into custody, police and the FBI said.

Carlesha Freeland-Gaither, 22, was rescued from a car that police found parked in Jessup, Md., Charles Ramsey, Philadelphia police commissioner, said.

A man also in the car was taken into custody and identified as Delvin Barnes, 37, said Ed Hanko, the FBI's special agent in charge of the Philadelphia office.

Barnes was being held on a warrant for attempted murder and other charges from a separate case in Virginia and "will be charged federally with the crimes here in Philadelphia,'' Hanko said.

Ramsey said the woman is "in good shape'' with some injuries and was taken to a hospital.

Her mother appeared at an emotional news conference with police, FBI and other law enforcement agencies and said she had spoken with her daughter following her recovery and that she was very happy to be freed.

Keisha Gaither, thanked police and the community for their support and said she hoped to be reunited with her daughter soon.

"She was very upset. She was crying. She just was asking for me, to tell me she loved me, she missed me, to come get her," Gaither said after talking with her daughter by phone.

"I'm going to get my daughter. I'm going to get my baby,'' she said.

The mother of a Philadelphia woman who was found with her alleged kidnapper in Maryland thanked law enforcement at a press conference Wednesday. (Nov. 5) AP

Ramsey called the suspect "a thug'' and "a vicious predator."

Philadelphia police detective James Smith said investigators believe the suspect was a stranger to the victim. He said the case is still under investigation and officers were waiting to interview Freeland-Gaither.

A multistate search had intensified with the release of a new video earlier in the day of a man described by the FBI as a person of interest in the case.

The latest video showed a man in a coat, dark pants, multicolored sneakers and a knit cap entering and shopping in an undisclosed grocery store Sunday afternoon, before the abduction of Freeland-Gaither.

Philadelphia police Capt. James Smith said the person shown was believed to be the same person seen in previously released images from a Maryland bank and gas-station minimart.

FBI spokeswoman Carrie Adamowski in Philadelphia said in an e-mail that the agency was not revealing the name of the store or its location. The video's time stamp, however, indicates it was recorded about eight hours before the abduction of Freeland-Gaither.

Philadelphia police previously released dramatic surveillance video showing Freeland-Gaither being snatched off the street and pushed into a waiting car in the city's Germantown neighborhood. The abduction occurred Sunday around 9:40 p.m. as the victim walked along a well-lit street.

Philadelphia police released surveillance video they say shows the apparent abduction of 22-year-old Carlesha Freeland-Gaither on Sunday. (Nov. 4) AP

Freeland-Gaither, yelling for help, was forced into a four-door vehicle — possibly a gray Ford Taurus with Pennsylvania license plates, police said.

Her glasses and cellphone fell into the street as she struggled with her assailant. The car can be seen rocking for almost 30 seconds as she continued to fight her abductor.

"Just before the vehicle pulled off, the driver and passenger side rear windows were broken out by (the victim)," police said.

A knife and glove were recovered at the scene, police said.

Police released still images of a man using Freeland-Gaither's bank card in Aberdeen, Md., 70 miles away, about eight hours after the abduction. Other images show a man shopping at a convenience store there.

Freeland-Gaither's grandmother, Ana Mulero, told The Associated Press the woman had lived with her in Maryland for several years and still has acquaintances there. But she said she didn't recognize the man in the photos.

A witness who called 911 said he was walking on the opposite side of the street when he heard Freeland-Gaither scream, KYW-TV reported.

"'Help me, help me,' and I turned around and I just started running up," he said. "I called the cops as I'm like, yo, screaming stop, stop, stop. He's dragging her to the car."

Freeland-Gaither's parents circulated fliers in Germantown, the neighborhood where she lived and was last seen. Facebook groups sprung up with prayers for her safe return.

Contributing: The Associated Press