A man will spend the next decade in prison for kidnapping a 71-year-old woman while driving from Georgia to North Carolina.
According to federal court records, the woman was driving when she noticed Jordan Nathaniel Hedden and his co-conspirator, Stephanie Miranda Neace, walking in November 2023. She informed prosecutors that she offered them a ride to get out of the cold.
After entering North Carolina, Hedden instructed the woman to drive his automobile and he drove her to the location he stated his car was. There was no second car, so when they arrived at the place, he ordered her to stop and sit in the back seat. He then took over driving.
According to court documents, Hedden appeared high and got nervous, fearing the woman had a tracking device. He pulled over, and he and Neace examined the car and each other for tracking devices before taking the woman’s phone and disabling it.
Hedden sought money from the woman, who claimed she only had $2. The woman then requested that the pair accompany her to an ATM.
They went to a petrol station ATM in Tennessee. When they got out of the car, the woman dashed toward the petrol station, screaming for assistance.
Hedden and Neace then fled into the woods but were discovered days later.
In 2024, he pleaded guilty to kidnapping and aiding and abetting and was sentenced to ten years in prison and five years of supervised release.
Neace was found guilty of kidnapping and is awaiting sentencing.
