ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, January 12, 1996 TAG: 9601120029
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LAURENCE HAMMACK STAFF WRITER
A man who led his estranged girlfriend at gunpoint from a Roanoke hair salon where she worked - firing several shots but wounding only himself - has been convicted of abduction and firearm charges.
Darren L. Cobbs, 24, pleaded guilty in Roanoke Circuit Court on Thursday to charges of abduction, use of a firearm, and possession of a firearm as a convicted felon.
Cobbs, who faces up to 17 years in prison, will be sentenced later.
Before accepting Cobbs' guilty pleas, Judge Diane Strickland heard the following summary of the evidence by Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Gerald Teaster:
On the afternoon of Aug. 15, 1995, Cobbs and two teen-agers drove to Hair Trends Inc. in the Hunting Hills Plaza off U.S. 220, where his former girlfriend, Cherie Harriston, worked as a hairdresser.
Cobbs, of Roanoke, entered the business with a small-caliber handgun, grabbed Harriston and led her outside. On the sidewalk, he fired several shots - one of which accidentally struck him in the leg. He then pushed Harriston into the waiting car and ordered one of the teens to drive away.
After driving Cobbs and Harriston to Franklin County, the two teens left them at a mobile home park and reported the incident to police.
As members of the Franklin County Special Operations Response Team were mobilizing around one trailer several hours later, Cobbs was arrested without incident when he walked outside. Harriston was not harmed.
Cobbs was treated at Franklin Memorial Hospital for his gunshot wound before being transferred to the Roanoke City Jail.
It was not clear exactly what motivated Cobbs to abduct his former girlfriend, Teaster said. Assistant Public Defender Steve Milani, who represented Cobbs, could not be reached for comment Thursday.
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