MOULTRIE — A Colquitt County man was arrested last week after his pregnant girlfriend solicited the help of a convenience store clerk to call the authorities on her behalf.

“She had gone up to the clerk with a black eye and several lacerations on her face asking for them to call 911,” said Will Pierce, investigator with the Colquitt County Sheriff’s Office. “The employee hid her in the manager’s office and watched the boyfriend wander around the inside and outside of the store looking for her until authorities arrived.”

Both Moultrie Police Department and the CCSO assisted in the apprehension of the 23-year-old male and the recovery of the abused woman.

}“The altercation began because he accused her of infidelity,” said Pierce. “It started at the house, but at some point they got in the car and started driving around, continuing to verbally fight.”

The argument continued to escalate, and the boyfriend began to threaten her life, adding terroristic threats to his list of charges.

“He pulled over on Gene McQueen Road and forcibly removed her from the vehicle against her will,” said Pierce. “He then proceeded to using a cell phone to repeatedly beat her on the head.”

With that act, three additional charges were added: kidnapping, criminal trespass and aggravated assault.

“A lot of people think to get charged with kidnapping you have to snatch someone up and take them out of state or something like that,” said Pierce. “But, in reality, kidnapping is anytime someone moves a person from location A to location B without their consent, even if it’s only five feet.”

After the assault, the cell phone was completely bent in half and cracked almost beyond recognition, which led to a criminal trespass charge.

“Thankfully, she was good at her defense,” said Pierce. “She managed to get herself into a ball for protection.”

Immediately following the assault, the boyfriend climbed in the car and drove away, leaving his 14-week-pregnant girlfriend bleeding on the side of the road.

“He left her there for about 10 minutes before he came back for her,” said Pierce. “She didn’t have a phone or know where she was, so she just had to wait until he came back for her.”

When he finally did return, she convinced him to take her to the convenience store where she was able to get assistance.

Pierce said the unborn child appeared to have been unharmed by the incident.

The suspect was handcuffed and taken to the Colquitt County Jail for processing.