Background: The grandmother of the child victim points to where the attempted kidnapping occurred in Huntington, West Virginia (WSAZ/YouTube). Inset: James Waller (Western Regional Jail and Correctional Facility).
A grandmother was spending time outside on her West Virginia property with her 6-year-old grandson when a stranger approached and tried to walk off with the boy, according to law enforcement and the woman.
James Waller, 33, is in the Western Regional Jail and Correctional Facility, jail records reviewed by Law&Crime show.
The defendant faces attempted abduction and kidnapping charges, regional NBC affiliate WSAZ reported.
Gina Algeo said that on Tuesday morning, she was outside her home along Blue Bell Lane near Route 10 in Huntington, West Virginia. The city is in the northern part of the state, touching the Ohio border and bordering Kentucky.
Suddenly, she said a man walked onto her driveway.
"Hey buddy, come here," the man — alleged to be Waller — said to the child, according to Algeo. The suspect then allegedly picked the boy up.
"I stood up, and I said, 'you need to put my grandson down,' and he kept walking, so I got louder and louder," the grandmother recounted to the local TV station. "[I] told him, 'if you don't put him down, I'm going to shoot you,' and he kept walking."
Algeo recalled that when she told the suspect she was going to call 911, he put the child down and left the property. Law enforcement officers reportedly found Waller nearby and arrested him.
The child's mother said she was at work when the incident occurred.
"We have no idea who he is; we've never seen him before," Courtnee Allen told WSAZ. "Why would anybody wanna take a child that's not theirs?"
Waller is expected to appear in court for a preliminary hearing on Wednesday.