Trucker In Kidnapping-For-Ransom Scheme Sentenced In Harford County

BEL AIR, MD — A South Carolina man was sentenced for an assault and robbery that happened in Harford County in 2021, prosecutors announced this week.

Brian Summerson, 27, of Dillon, S.C., was ordered to serve 30 years in the Department of Corrections after officials said he strangled and robbed a woman he met in person after they interacted online.

The Harford County Sheriff's Office was informed of the assault when detectives were called to Mercy Hospital in Baltimore, where they learned the victim had met a man online and agreed to meet him in Harford County. When they were together in Belcamp, officials said Summerson strangled the woman and forced him to send her money through Cash App.

Summerson was a trucker who primarily traveled from New Jersey to Miami along Interstate 95, according to the FBI, which reported he also traveled to Chicago and Missouri. After telling his victims his name was "Von" or "Vaughn," officials said he would kidnap women and demand a ransom to release them.

The Belcamp assault occurred in the cab of Summerson's truck on Jan. 8, 2021, prosecutors reported.

Phone numbers the victim provided and her ability to pick Summerson out of a photo array helped officers in Harford County identify him, prosecutors said.

Summerson was arrested in Florida for a crime similar to what happened in Harford County, officials said. A federal warrant had also been issued for his arrest in connection with a kidnapping in Tennessee, according to authorities.

Upon discovering Summerson was involved in a kidnapping-for-ransom scheme, federal authorities asked for potential victims to come forward in April 2021.

After he was extradited to Harford County, Summerson was convicted of assault following a four-day bench trial in March. He was sentenced May 13, according to court records.

Judge Kevin J. Mahoney ordered Summerson to serve 25 years with all but 20 suspended for first-degree assault and 15 years with all but 10 suspended for robbery, court records show. He was also found guilty of second-degree assault and theft from $100 to $1,500.

“I am very pleased with this outcome,” Harford County State’s Attorney Albert J. Peisinger Jr. said in a statement. “This violent individual deserved nothing less than the significant jail sentence he received for this horrible crime.”

Following his release, Summerson will also be on supervised probation for five years.

"I certainly hope that the victim can find closure," Peisinger said in a statement released Monday. "As this prosecution and sentence shows, we will not waver in our commitment to eradicating brutal and senseless instances of violence such as this to ensure the safety of our communities."