Dashcam captures handcuffed woman sprinting to truck driver for help in South Carolina

A truck driver has spoken publicly about the moment a handcuffed woman ran to his vehicle for help whilst allegedly being pursued by a man in a car along a rural road — an incident recorded in full on his dashcam.

The footage, captured on 29 May, shows a woman with her hands bound behind her back sprinting down a rural road in Aiken County, South Carolina. Authorities have not publicly identified the woman.

Jonathan Willard has since been arrested in connection with the incident, according to the Associated Press and WRDW.

What the truck driver witnessed

Anthony Moore was travelling along the rural road when he spotted the woman moving erratically across the carriageway as a vehicle appeared to pursue her.

"She would run on one side of the road — he'd try to run her over — then she'd run to the other side… and he'd try to run her over there," Moore told WRDW.

Moore's dashcam footage, a portion of which was published online by WRDW, shows the handcuffed woman crossing from the opposite side of the road towards his lorry, with the car behind her accelerating and cutting across lanes in pursuit.

The pair briefly disappear from the camera's view as she turns in front of the truck and the car follows. She then reappears momentarily, running back in the direction she came from towards other vehicles. The pursuing car does not feature in the remainder of the footage published online.

"He tried to kidnap me, sir"

Moore told WRDW that the woman eventually reached his truck and begged him for assistance. At that point, the man allegedly chasing her claimed to be a police officer.

"She jumped in my car and said, 'No he is not. He tried to kidnap me, sir,'" Moore recalled.

A second witness, identified only as Glen by WRDW, rang 999 to report the incident and was able to remove the handcuffs from the woman.

How the alleged kidnap unfolded

The woman told Moore she had graduated the previous day and had been on her way to her mother's home from her father's when the incident began, according to both the Associated Press and WRDW.

According to an incident report from the Aiken County Sheriff's Office, cited by the Associated Press, the suspect allegedly pulled up behind her and told her he was a police officer before forcing her into his vehicle.

She managed to escape through the front of the car after the man stopped at a gated community and began searching through his boot. The woman also told Moore that the man had taken her diploma, both outlets reported.

Charges and court records

Willard has been charged with one count each of kidnapping and impersonating a police officer, according to online court records. No plea or attorney information was listed in those records.