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Man accused of kidnapping a Golden Triangle attorney

Archived as originally published. Information reflects the date of this article.

An Orange man has been arrested and faces federal charges after he was accused of kidnapping a longtime Beaumont attorney, and it’s not the first time he’s been accused of doing this. Putnam Darwin Richardson, 79, is accused of kidnapping Mel Shelander, owner of the Shelander Law Offices on Fourth Street. The crime occurred on Monday, and Richardson – who was still holding Shelander against his will - was found on Wednesday by law enforcement officers in Louisiana. Richardson appeared before Federal Magistrate Judge Zack Hawthorn on Thursday for an initial hearing, and the court appointed Houston attorney Tom Berg to represent him. Richardson was convicted of kidnapping in the 1980s and served a prison sentence for that crime.