Ahoskie Police Search for Kidnapped Man

Ahoskie police believe Donald Bradley Smithwick was kidnapped from his home at 420 North Colony Ave. on Thursday morning.

Posted 5:42 a.m. Oct 5, 2007 — Updated 6:25 a.m. Oct 5, 2007

AHOSKIE, N.C. — Ahoskie police have made an arrest but are still searching for the victim in the kidnapping of a man early Thursday morning.

Emergency dispatchers received calls around 6 a.m. that Donald Bradley Smithwick was kidnapped from his home at 420 North Colony Avenue. Smithwick was possibly leaving for work at the time, police said.

Police arrested Raymond Christian Jedele, 38, of 113 Colony Lane in Kill Devil Hills, around midnight, Ahoskie Police Chief Tony Fitzhugh said. Jedele has been charged with first-degree kidnapping, and his first court appearance is set for Friday at the Hertford County courthouse in Winton.

Assisting in the investigation were the State Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Marshall's Service and North Carolina Highway Patrol, along with law-enforcement agencies in nearby counties and municipalities.

Ahoskie is in Hertford County, in northeastern North Carolina.

Anyone with information about Smithwick's whereabouts or the case is asked to call the Ahoskie Police Department at 252-332-5011.

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