Corey Pritchett Jr., a social media influencer from Houston who allegedly threatened to kill and assault two women and fled the country, was taken into custody and booked into the Harris County Jail on Thursday.
According to court documents, Pritchett, 26, was being held in the jail on a total $200,000 bond and is facing two charges of aggravated kidnapping.
After Pritchett allegedly drove the two ladies who told police they were afraid for their lives to a rural region west of Houston and forced them out of his car on November 22, a warrant for his arrest was first issued.
Around the same time, Pritchett announced on Instagram and TikTok that he was leaving the country to begin a new life in Dubai. According to court records, FBI authorities verified that Pritchett had a one-way ticket and flew to Doha Airport in Qatar.
When and how Pritchett returned to the United States on Friday were not immediately known. According to court documents, he must give up his passport and stay in the Greater Houston area if he is freed from custody on bond.
On Friday, Pritchett’s court-appointed defense lawyer was not immediately available for comment.
Pritchett has amassed a sizable social media following and a personal YouTube channel with about 4 million members. He frequently promoted his musical profession on social media and has over a million subscribers on another YouTube channel that he shared with his spouse.
A warrant has been issued for the arrest of a Houston YouTuber on allegations of aggravated kidnapping.
The alleged kidnapping
According to court filings, the two women who were allegedly abducted by Pritchett informed police that they had met him at a gym in southwest Houston just hours before he offered to drive them home. They claimed to have observed a difference in Pritchett’s behavior during that evening’s journey. According to court documents, he allegedly started driving away from the house and eventually reached speeds of up to 100 miles per hour on Interstate 10.
According to court records, Pritchett allegedly pointed a gun at one lady when she started texting on her mobile phone and implied in a phone conversation during the journey that he had the ideal opportunity to take the women to a secluded location where no one could hear or locate them.
According to court documents, he stopped the car after passing a Sealy restaurant and allegedly instructed the women to get out, saying it would be their final chance.
Investigators said they used screenshots of the women’s location from the Life 360 app and mobile phone records to verify what the women told police.
On Tuesday, Pritchett is scheduled to appear in court.
