Macon man sentenced in robbery, kidnapping that left family member injured
CORRECTION: The victim, Adrian Howard, did not die as a result of the kidnapping and armed robbery incident. This information was incorrect in a previous version of the article.
A Macon man will serve life in prison after he executed, alongside an unidentified accomplice, an armed robbery and kidnapping in 2022 on a family member then “left him for dead,” the Macon Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office said in a news release.
Hdywandus Hdyminus Harden, 43, was found guilty of armed robbery and kidnapping on Wednesday evening. In addition to the life sentence, he also received 10 years in prison for kidnapping, prosecutors said Thursday afternoon.
Harden took part in and orchestrated a violent armed robbery and kidnapping that “left (Adrian Montez Howard) shot five times and abandoned on the roadside in broad daylight” in May 2022, prosecutors said.
The two men were related by marriage; Harden’s brother was married to Howard’s sister, according to prosecutors.
Harden’s actions were a “calculated and brutal attack on a victim who trusted the defendant because of their family connection,” District Attorney Anita Howard said in the release.
“Mr. Howard showed up to help someone he knew, only to be violently ambushed and left for dead,” the district attorney said.
Harden also was charged with aggravated assault, but was not found guilty of the charge, Susan Ryan, spokesperson for the Macon Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office, confirmed Thursday.
Prosecutors: Unidentified accomplice at large
The victim met Harden near CSL Plasma on Mercer University Drive on May 25, 2022. As Adrian Howard drove up to Harden, an “unidentified male accomplice” emerged from the woods, hit Howard with the firearm and forced him at gunpoint into the backseat of the car.
Harden demanded money from Howard, and eventually transferred $400 to his own account, the news release said. Howard then attempted to flee the vehicle as they were approaching Thomaston Road.
“Harden executed a U-turn, chased Howard in the SUV, and shot him five times,” according to the news release. “Both assailants then drove away in Howard’s vehicle, leaving the victim wounded on the side of the road.”
The accomplice remains unidentified and at large, according to the release.
“While we’re grateful for this conviction … our work isn’t finished. The accomplice remains at large, and we encourage anyone with information to come forward,” prosecutors said in the news release.
This story was originally published February 5, 2026 at 4:45 PM.
