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Three UTM students charged in campus robbery, kidnapping

Three UTM students charged in campus robbery, kidnapping
By BRAD GASKINS
News Editor
MARTIN –  Three UT Martin students and a juvenile have been charged in the drug-related robbery and kidnapping of two other students late Monday night on UTM’s campus.
Arrested were Richard L. Taylor, Jeremy L. Anderson, Cortez Bowen and a 17 year-old male. Each is charged with two counts of especially aggravated robbery and two counts of aggravated kidnapping.
Taylor and Bowen live at University Courts, while Anderson resides at 154 West Peach Street, according to Scott Robbins, UTM’s director of public safety.
Anderson, 22, of Knoxville is a senior health and human performance major, according to UTM spokesman Bud Grimes. Taylor, 19, of Nashville is a freshman majoring in health and human performance licensure K-12, according to Grimes. Bowen, 21, of Memphis is a sophomore with no declared major, Grimes said.
The two victims were specifically targeted, Robbins said.
A “large amount” or marijuana was recovered, and drug-related charges could be brought against the victims, Robbins said.
Taylor, Anderson and Bowen were to be arraigned Wednesday afternoon in Weakley County Circuit Court, Robbins said. A detention hearing for the juvenile suspect is scheduled for Friday, Robbins said.
Robbins described the chain of events like this:
At about 11:45 p.m. Monday, the suspects stopped a car driven by the victims at University Village Phase I apartments, the eastern-most of the new apartment-style facilities on campus.
Two suspects – one armed with a shotgun, the other a handgun – got into the car driven by the victims. The victims were then forced to drive to another area of campus, at which point one of the victims was put into another car and held hostage. Meanwhile, the other victim was forced to go to a dorm room to retrieve drugs and $700 cash.
UTM police were called at 12:33 a.m. Tuesday, Robbins said.
Both victims were injured in the incident, with one of them taken to a hospital for treatment and released a few hours later.
Martin police assisted with the investigation.
“I just want to thank the Martin Police Department for all their help with this, and thank their officers for handling this so quickly,” Robbins said.
Published in The WCP 11.15.12