A Texas man was sentenced Tuesday to life in prison for kidnapping his ex-girlfriend in Las Vegas, then chaining her to the floorboard of his van and driving her to a cave in New Mexico, according to U.S. Attorney's Office.
Jack William Morgan, 32, had previously been found guilty by a jury of one count of conspiracy to commit kidnapping and one count of kidnapping.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Morgan and co-defendant Samuel Brown conspired to use force and violence to kidnap Morgan’s ex-girlfriend and to take her to New Mexico. Brown identifies as a woman and uses the name Sophie.
On Jan. 30, 2017, Brown went door-to-door at the woman’s apartment complex near Decatur Boulevard and Flamingo Road until he found her. Morgan forced his way into her apartment and kidnapped her, according to court documents. He gagged her, dragged her down the stairs, and choked her unconscious. He then handcuffed her wrists and ankles and chained her to the floorboard of his van where Brown was waiting.
They drove to a cave that Morgan carved out in the side of a remote hill in Española, New Mexico. A law enforcement alert was issued and the New Mexico State Police and Española Police Department found the van driving along U.S. Highway 84. They arrested Morgan and Brown and rescued the woman.
Brown pleaded guilty prior to the trial and was sentenced to 63 months in prison and five years of supervised release following the prison sentence.
