WESTMINSTER, COLORADO - A man was arrested on suspicion of kidnapping after his ex-girlfriend was found in a crawl space at his house. <br>
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Maxine Southern, 39, was reported missing Jan. 14 by an adult daughter. Police said they found her unharmed Friday during a search of William Gorman's house after a neighbor discovered handwritten notes in trash bags asking for help. <br>
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Gorman, 44, was arrested on suspicion of second-degree kidnapping. He was released from the Adams County Jail on $30,000 bond and was scheduled to appear in court April 12. <br>
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Police announced the arrest Monday. <br>
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Gorman denied keeping Southern against her will and said he was helping her hide from police because of outstanding arrest warrants. <br>
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Southern had no listed phone number. Police did not know where she was Monday night. <br>
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Westminster investigator Tim Torres said Southern had outstanding warrants on narcotics, assault and disorderly conduct charges. <br>
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Torres said officers believe Gorman ordered Southern into a crawl space off a basement bedroom when he did not want people to know she was there. The space is hidden behind a bookshelf that serves as a trick door. <br>
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She was not in the crawl space all the time but was psychologically intimidated from leaving the house, police said. <br>
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Gorman said Southern asked in January to stay at his house because she had no money and needed to hide. <br>
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He said he warned Southern if police came to the door and she voluntarily climbed into the crawl space. She took a flashlight and was never in the space longer than 10 minutes, he said. <br>
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``She put herself in (the crawl space) on her own free will, end of story,'' he said. <br>
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Neighbors said they never heard or saw anything out of the ordinary at the house. <br>
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``We never had any complaints about him,'' Betty Hose said. ``It's just hard to believe he would do that.''
