Alabama woman kidnapped, found bound with duct tape in closet: deputies

An elderly Alabama woman was kidnapped by a man who left her bound in duct tape inside his closet, authorities said Tuesday.

Tony Lamar White, 47, is being sought in Monday’s kidnapping of 75-year-old Betty Cobb, whom he followed home as she went shopping, according to the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office.

“He randomly chose her,” Sheriff Matthew Wade wrote Tuesday in an email to The Post. “She was buying groceries and he followed her to her residence.”

Deputies said Cobb left her keys and phone on her bed, while her glasses and some groceries were found in the driveway of her Anniston home.

Cobb was discovered later Monday inside a closet at White’s home in Anniston, where she was bound with duct tape, Lt. Falon Hurst said.

“I don’t know how he selected her, but he followed her home from a grocery store,” Hurst told The Post.

A motive in the kidnapping remains unclear. Cobb was taken to a hospital for observation after being rescued by deputies. She and White did not know each other, Hurst said.

Reached for comment early Tuesday, Cobb confirmed White was a stranger but had little else to say aside from that she felt “pretty good” considering Monday’s frightening incident.

“I just can’t talk right now,” Cobb told The Post before hanging up.

White, who remains on the run, may be on foot in the area of Fourth Street in Anniston. He also could be driving a silver Chrysler 300 with a license plate of 11JA702, sheriff’s officials said.

Anyone with information regarding White’s whereabouts should call authorities at (256) 236-6600. He has multiple warrants for his arrest and should be considered dangerous, WBRC reported.