Crime and Courts

Kidnapping suspect accused of assaulting fellow inmate in Gallatin County jail

Posted: Oct 22, 2012 4:47 PM by Erin Schattauer

BOZEMAN - A man being held at the Gallatin County Detention Center for aggravated kidnapping is being cited for assaulting a fellow inmate.

At around 9:30 a.m. Monday, Charles Rickett was exchanging words with another inmate when he reportedly picked up the man and dropped him to the ground. Rickett and the other man were being housed together and were in a common area when the assault took place, the jail administrator, Lt. Jeff Wade, said.

The two men were immediately separated. Wade said the inmate was still in the hospital as of this afternoon. No one else was injured during the incident.

Rickett is in jail, accused of tying up and Duct taping his former foster mother and threatening to burn her inside her home.

In July, Rickett reportedly walked away from the Bozeman pre-release center. That same day, a woman says Rickett came into her bedroom, ordering her to the ground then tying her, Duct taping her arms and legs together and Duct taping a blindfold to her face, according to an affidavit of probable cause. Rickett then reportedly told her he would burn her if she tried to escape and waved a gas can in her face for her to smell.

Although she didn't see his face, the woman said she recognized the man's voice as that of a foster child that lived with her several years ago.

The woman was able to escape after the man left in her car. Gallatin County Sheriff's deputies found her car one block away parked in front of a driveway. They found the man on foot about two blocks from the vehicle, according to court papers.

Rickett reportedly admitted to being an escapee from the prerelease center but would not answer any further questions. He was taken to the Gallatin County Detention Center.

Inside the woman's residence, police found Duct tape, a rope, a gas can and bottle appearing to contain bleach or other type of cleaning product. They also found an address book labeled with Rickett's name.

Rickett is being held in the Gallatin County Detention Center on $50,000 bond in that case.