UPDATED: Salisbury Man Found Guilty in Violent Carjacking and Kidnapping
UPDATED – 11/17/23 – A Salisbury man has been convicted of attempted 1st and 2nd degree murder, 1st and 2nd degree rape, kidnapping, armed robbery and other offenses after he kidnapped an 80 year old Seaford woman outside her home in January and left her in the Wicomico River in Salisbury. Sentencing for 23 year old Ralph Harmon has been postponed for a pre-sentencing investigation. Harmon will remain in custody pending sentencing.
According to court records, on January 13, 2023, the eighty year-old-victim exited her residence in Seaford, DE and walked to her car parked in her driveway. At that time, she was approached by Harmon, forced at gunpoint into her vehicle, pistol whipped, and driven away. The victim was robbed of her jewelry and forced by Harmon to provide the PIN number to her debit card. After crossing into Maryland, Harmon sexually assaulted and bound the victim’s hands together. After visiting multiple ATM’s, Harmon drove the victim to a residence on Riverside Drive in Salisbury where he forced her to walk onto a pier. Harmon then pushed the victim into the frigid water of the Wicomico River. When the victim managed to surface, Harmon laid onto the pier and again pistol whipped the victim causing her to again slip beneath the water and sustain a significant laceration to her head. Satisfied that she would not survive, Harmon walked back to the victim’s vehicle and left the area.
After more than eleven minutes in the freezing water, the victim was able to free her hands and climb up a kayak ramp onto the pier. She then managed to walk to Riverside Drive where passing motorists called 911. The victim was transported to Tidal Health where she received staples in her head and received care for multiple other injuries.
After leaving the victim in the Wicomico River with her hands bound, Harmon proceeded to pick up five of his friends and engage in a spending spree using the victim’s debit card. In the afternoon hours of January 13th, the victim’s vehicle was observed by police in a parking lot on Main Street in Salisbury. As the police approached the vehicle, Ralph Harmon immediately fled the area. After a brief foot chase he was arrested, still in possession of the victim’s debit card.
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A federal grand jury returned an indictment this week charging 23-year-old Ralph Harmon of Salisbury with committing violent carjacking and kidnapping in Seaford. The indictment stems from those crimes committed on January 13th of this year, which caused serious bodily injury to the victim. Harmon is charged with carjacking and interstate kidnapping. If convicted, he faces a maximum life imprisonment for the kidnapping and 25-years in prison for the carjacking. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
ORIGINAL STORY – https://www.wgmd.com/seaford-msp-investigating-carjacking-kidnapping-friday-morning/
