Man remanded in custody on ‘kidnap’ charge
A man has been remanded in custody after appearing in court charged with the kidnap of a 10-year-old boy who disappeared on a trip to local shops in the West Midlands, as Darshna Soni reports.
Michael Jackson, 49, is charged with kidnap, false imprisonment, threats to kill and sexual assault.
Police believe he snatched a 10-year-old boy on Sunday in Oldbury, in the West Midlands. The boy was later rescued by police.
Mr Jackson did not speak during the brief hearing at Warley Magistrates’ Court.
Channel 4 News Midlands Correspondent Darshna Soni was at court.
She writes: “The accused made a brief appearance before magistrates this morning, wearing a grey track suit. More details are emerging about the 49-year-old, who is accused of kidnapping a schoolboy.
“Its been claimed that he was born Albert English. However, an ex-wife has told reporters that he changed his name by deed poll to impress her, to Michael Jackson.
“It’s understood he once worked as a DJ on a pirate radio station.
“The charges were read out to Mr Jackson. As well as the alleged kidnapping of a schoolboy this weekend, he is also accused of a previous incident in which an 11-year-old was abducted.
“West Midlands Police have stressed that Mr Jackson was not on bail for the first alleged kidnap, which happened in September. It’s understood the child was unharmed and the child’s parents only reported the incident after hearing about Sunday’s events.”