Man arrested in woman's kidnappingAnother county could add rape to charges
Asheville: A man who's been staying at the local Salvation Army shelter was charged Monday with kidnapping an Asheville woman and driving her outside Western North Carolina for the purpose of sexually assaulting her.
Cleveland Wesley Heller, 39, was charged with first-degree kidnapping.
According to a Buncombe County magistrate, the incident began Sunday night when the woman left a friend's house where she was visiting. As she was walking to her car, a man whom she didn't know forced her into the passanger side of her car and drove her to the Statesville area.
A sexual assault charge could be filed in the county to which the woman was taken, the magistrate said. The man eventually returned the woman to Asheville, where she reported the assault to the Asheville Police Department.
The woman was "terrorized" and suffered serious injuries, according to the arrest warrant. The magistrate said her face was bruised and bloody.
Heller said he'd lived in California, Statesville, Conover and was staying at the Salvation Army most recently, according to court documents.
Bond was set at $25,000 secured. He remained in Buncombe County Jail Monday night. A court appearance is set for 9:30 a.m. today. by Susan Dryman Asheville Citizen-Times February 27, 2001, Sect. B
