Person Who Took Kristi Cornwell Might Have Tried to Snatch Another Woman

Dec. 7, 2009 — -- A man who allegedly tried and failed to abduct a woman from the side of a road in August might have also been involved in the apparent kidnapping of a Georgia mother just days later, investigators said today.

Kristi Cornwell, 28, was taking a routine evening walk on Aug. 11 when police believe she was abducted down the street from her family's home in Blairsville, Ga.

Cornwell, who has a 15-year-old son, Brody, was on her cell phone with her boyfriend, Douglas Davis, when she went out around 9 p.m. Davis told the police that Cornwell said a car was approaching her. He then heard a struggle and Cornwell yelled, "Don't take me!" Then Davis lost reception.

Now, after nearly four months, investigators believe that a similar crime just days before might shed light on what happened.

On Aug. 2, another woman, who has not been publicly identified, was walking along a road in Ranger, N.C. -- approximately 25 miles from where Cornwell was last seen – when, she told investigators, a "vehicle pulled up behind her and knocked her to the ground," according to a statement released today by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

"The timing and the vehicle description involved in this incident indicates a possible connection to Kristi's disappearance," said the statement.

But the man was apparently scared off when another car approached the area. The woman, who did not immediately report the incident, did so only after hearing about Cornwell's disappearance and later helped authorities develop a sketch of the suspect.

Based on the woman's description, the suspect is believed to be a white male in his mid-20s with dark hair. He may be driving a silver, late-model Nissan Xterra with tinted windows and a brush guard on the front.