Man allegedly held in shed with no water, electricity

STANLY COUNTY, N.C. — Investigators said tips have been flowing in since Channel 9′s first report two weeks ago on Richard Huneycutt.

Those tips led investigators to charge Huneycutt with kidnapping.

Stanly County Detective Karcin Vick-Dunn received a stack of tips regarding Huneycutt, who they arrested last month on charges of forging a will and stealing from a dead man’s estate.

“Since your original airing, we were flooded with calls related to the last 30 years,” Vick-Dunn said.

While investigating that forged will, Vick-Dunn said they learned about a disabled adult who was being held on Huneycutt’s property in a shed She said the structure wasn’t visible from the road.

“He was not free to leave,” she said. “He was not able to leave.”

Vick-Dunn said they charged Huneycutt with:

• Four counts of first-degree kidnapping.
• Four counts of exploitation of a disabled adult.
• Four counts of abuse/neglect of disabled adult.

The person did not have access to basic utilities including water, electricity, or a bathroom.

The county recently condemned a home on Huneycutt’s property, because of unlivable conditions.

Court documents indicated the shed in the back of his property where the disabled adult was held was in even worse shape.

“They had no voice and so we hope to be their voice in the prosecution going forward,” said Vick-Dunn said.

Stanly County Adult Protective Services removed the adult, who’s now in a group home.

Channel 9 asked how the person ended up living on Huneycutt’s property to begin with but we have not gotten a response.

Detectives charged Huneycutt with 12 additional felonies.

“The amount of calls that have been reported since your original airing speaks to the volume of the generational victimization that he has been involved with,” she said.

The investigation is ongoing, and investigators ask anyone with information to come forward.

VIDEO: Stanly County man accused of forging will to steal dead man’s estate

Stanly County man accused of forging will to steal dead man’s estate

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