Suspect Arrested, Child Safe After Gastonia Abduction Triggers Amber Alert
GASTONIA, N.C. – A little girl is reunited with her mother after police say her father abducted her in Gastonia.
The search for 3-year-old Destiny Boykins triggered an Amber Alert.
U.S. Marshals arrested the suspect and rescued the girl after a violent crash in West Charlotte.
57-year-old Maurice Knox is accused of abducting the little girl.
She was found safe after the crash at Remount Road and Toomey Avenue.
“You know, I have a daughter of my own, and that really kind of touches home, you know,” says Gastonia resident Glenn Parker.
Parker lives in the apartment complex where police say the abduction happened on East Hudson Boulevard.
Like others in our area, he got the Amber Alert first thing in the morning.
“It was right here! You know, so that did kind of set off an alarm,” he explains.
Investigators haven’t said what led Knox to abduct the little girl.
We have learned he was in violation of a domestic violence protection order.
He now faces several charges including Breaking and Entering, Assault on a Female, Kidnapping, and Assault on a Law Enforcement Officer.
“I’m grateful that law enforcement was able to do their job, very well. I know if it was my kid, I would be terrified,” says neighbor Hannah Carnes.
She says she feels for the little girl and her family.
“I’ve seen her and her mom, you know, walk around here, at the playground and stuff, I’ll wave at the little girl, I’ll say hey to her mom and stuff,” she says.
