Man charged with kidnapping woman

The Manatee County Sheriff’s Office arrested a 23-year-old Bradenton man early Tuesday in connection to an armed kidnapping, according to a press release.

Around 1:30 a.m., Nathan T. Kozial unlawfully entered the home of the 27-year-old victim, with whom he had been dating according to the release and recently had a no-contact order put in place against him.

According to the release, he pointed a gun at the victim and forced her into the garage, where he sexually assaulted her.

Then, Koziol forced her to drive his car to a Bradenton apartment complex, but she escaped and sought help.

Deputies investigated and found Koziol around the apartment complex, where he was arrested without incident. The 23-year-old also had a loaded firearm on him when he was arrested.

Koziol was charged with the following:

• Armed kidnapping.
• Sexual battery.
• Armed burglary with battery.
• Possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
• Violation of no-contact order.

Koziol had been released from the Manatee County jail about three weeks prior on a domestic battery charge with a $11,500 bond.

This story was originally published August 23, 2016 at 10:34 AM with the headline "Man charged with kidnapping woman."