Police in Tuscaloosa have charged two young men with kidnapping after they allegedly held a victim hostage after a drug deal gone wrong.

Captain Jack Kennedy, the commander of the Tuscaloosa Violent Crimes Unit, said in a press release that a family on Saturday reported that one of their relatives was being held against his will and they were receiving demands for money.

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The Tuscaloosa Police Department and county sheriff's office confirmed that the victims phone was originally in Tuscaloosa before its owner went missing.

Kennedy said multiple law enforcement agencies began working together and determined the victim may have been in Bessemer, where officers stopped a vehicle in the parking lot of local a business and took the victim and two others into custody.

Kennedy said the VCU went to took over the investigation and spent the weekend investigating what happened, including through multiple search warrants to collect physical, electronic and video evidence in two counties. He said they also interviewed multiple witnesses and others involved in the incident.

"After investigation it was determined that the victim had been abducted at gun point from his residence because an acquaintance of his had failed to pay for a large delivery of drugs," Kennedy said. "The suspects then began forcing the victim to call friends and family and began demanding large amounts of money.  Due to the courageous actions of the family and multiple police agencies working together, the suspects were located with the victim still in their vehicle and he was recovered unharmed."

Kennedy praised multi-agency and jurisdictional cooperation, as the VCU received aid from TPD, TCSO deputies, local dispatchers, the West Alabama Narcotics Task Force, the Bessemer Police Department and more to locate and rescue the victim.

Two young men, 18-year-old Amarion Dewayne Smith and 19-year-old Korbyn Markeith Williams were arrested and charged with Kidnapping 1st degree, Trafficking Marijuana, and Failure to affix a Tax Stamp.

Both are being held in the Tuscaloosa County Jail without bond.

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