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Man Accused Of Kidnapping Faces Additional Charges Of Rape, Sexual Battery

Posted at 9:36 PM, Dec 05, 2016
and last updated 2016-12-06 09:19:01-05

The man accused of kidnapping a 9-year-old girl has been charged with additional crimes, including rape and sexual battery.

Gary Simpson was arrested in May and appeared in court for a preliminary hearing.

The alleged victim went missing when police said Simpson removed her from school under false pretenses.

After several days of being missing, the reward for her safe return reached $40,000.

Two Hawkins County residents, Stewart Franklin and Donnie Lawson, found the girl and her uncle deep into the woods on their property in an area that was only accessible by ATV.

Simpson was initially charged with especially aggravated kidnapping and custodial kidnapping.

His bond was set at $1 million, and is expected to be in court on December 9 .