He followed her from a store & grabbed her from behind at her front door, police say

Gwinnett County police are searching for a man who’s accused of attempting to kidnap a woman after following her from a Walmart store near her home.

Arrest warrants for felony kidnapping and misdemeanor battery have been issued for 23-year-old Jamez Maclin, according to a Gwinnett County Police Department news release issued Thursday afternoon.

The victim told police she noticed a white four-door BMW parked behind her van when she was leaving a Walmart at 3795 Buford Drive about a mile from her home late Wednesday night, according to a Gwinnett County police incident report.

As she was driving home, she noticed the same car behind her but at a distance. She did not realize then that the driver was actually following her.

When she arrived home, she backed her van into her driveway and went to her front door.

“As she was opening her front door, she was grabbed from behind,” the report said.

She started screaming as the man, later identified as Maclin, tried to pull her back out of the house, the report said. Her mother came running to the door, and Maclin let go and fled in his car.

The incident happened shortly before midnight.

Responding police found his car at the same Walmart, where he apparently had returned and then left on foot, according to a Gwinnett County police news release.

Police obtained the vehicle registration and a photo from the driver’s license that the car was registered to and the victim identified Maclin from that driver’s license photo, according to the release. She also picked out Maclin’s car as the one that she saw her attacker flee in.

Thursday morning, Maclin attempted to report his car stolen in an attempt to coverup that he’d used the car in the kidnapping attempt, the release said.

“This was a very dangerous situation that could have ended differently if the woman had not screamed and had help from her mother,” the release said. “Police strongly urge women not to shop alone late at night.”

Other safety tips including parking in a well-lit areas and looking around your vehicle before you get out of it.

“If you have suspicions that you are being followed, do not ignore them, drive to the nearest police precinct or heavily populated area and call 911,” Washington said.

Anyone with information to share in this case, please contact Gwinnett County police detectives at 770-513-5300. Anonymous tipsters should contact Crime Stoppers at 404-577-8477, or visit www.crimestoppersatlanta.org.

Crime Stoppers tipsters can receive up to $2,000 for information leading to an arrest and indictment in this case. The case number is 17-078528.

This story was originally published August 24, 2017 at 3:39 PM with the headline "He followed her from a store & grabbed her from behind at her front door, police say."