(Walhalla, SC)-------------------------------------A Somerset, VA man remains in jail today, after his bond was denied, on charges of Kidnapping and Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor.
53 year old Michael Ross Carrico, of the Blue Ridge Turnpike, was booked into the Oconee County Detention Center around 4:43pm Wednesday after being transported from the Swain County (NC) Detention Center. Carrico will appear before a Circuit Court Judge, at a later time, regarding his bond.
A Deputy from the Uniform Patrol Bureau responded to Holders Landing Road on the evening of New Year’s Eve in regards to reports of a missing teenager. The Deputy spoke to family members at the scene.
Deputies then attempted to locate the missing teenager but attempts to locate her proved unsuccessful. During further investigation, deputies discovered that the teenager had been in communication with multiple people using different apps.
The teenager’s information was entered into the National Crimes Information Center database and the Missing Person’s Unit of the Criminal Investigations Bureau was notified and took over the investigation. On New Year’s Day, Investigators were notified that the victim was located in Cherokee, NC.
Based upon evidence that was gathered during the investigation, Investigators learned that the teenager was placed inside a truck by a person later identified as Carrico. After making a few stops, Carrico drove the victim to a motel in Cherokee, NC.
The teenager was later able to leave the motel and went to a place of business in Cherokee, where an employee contacted law enforcement. Carrico was then taken into custody by the Cherokee Tribal Police and transported to jail in Swain County where a hold was placed on him.
The Oconee County Sheriff’s Office is continuing its investigation. In order to preserve the integrity of the investigation, and that of the victim as well, the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office will not release any information that could in anyway, either directly or indirectly, identify the victim in this investigation.