NEW BOSTON, Texas–A man who attacked a woman in a car on State Line Avenue in Texarkana after arranging to meet her on social media was sentenced to 50 years in prison Wednesday by a Bowie County jury for kidnapping and other crimes.
Cody Williams, 23, was convicted of aggravated kidnapping, aggravated robbery, possession of a firearm by a felon and drug possession in connection with a Nov. 12, 2021, meet-up with an 18-year-old Texarkana woman he met on Facebook a couple of months earlier, according to a probable cause affidavit.
The woman and a friend met Williams at a location in the 3600 block of State Line Avenue. Shortly after getting into the woman’s friend’s car, Williams began asking if the two of them would travel with him to Mount Pleasant for a sexual encounter.
When the women told Williams they only intended to “hang out” with him, he became aggressive and demanded gas money. Williams spoke of having a gun and threatened to kill the women before grabbing some cash in the vehicle’s console. The driver pulled over and got out of the car, intending to call police.
When she did, Williams grabbed the woman he’d met online and began pulling her into another car. The woman was able to escape at a stoplight and her screams were heard by Texarkana, Arkansas, Police Department officers in the area.
Williams was found to be in possession of Ecstasy with a methamphetamine component and a .40-caliber handgun.
He received a 50-year term for aggravated kidnapping, 20 years for aggravated robbery, eight years for possessing a firearm as a previously convicted felon and four years for drug possession, Assistant District Attorney Bradley Akins said.
Akins praised the jury and the work of law enforcement.
“When we call the citizens of our county to render justice and protect the members of our community, they do just that,” Akins said. “Thankfully we can continue to have faith in the safety of the community we live in because of the great work of our local police.”
District Judge Jeff Addison presided over the case.
