Center Point man sentenced to nearly 20 years for Tuscaloosa kidnapping

Amarion Dewayne Jackson, a 20-year-old man from Center Point, Alabama, has been sentenced to 235 months in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release. The sentence follows his guilty plea to conspiracy to kidnap and kidnapping.

In January 2025, Jackson and co-defendant Korbyn Markeith Williams, 21, kidnapped a man at gunpoint from his Tuscaloosa apartment. The abduction was motivated by an unpaid narcotics debt involving a third party, though the victim was not involved in the transaction. The suspects threatened to kill the victim and demanded at least $5,000 for his safe return.

Following a 911 call, a Bessemer police officer located the suspects' vehicle while they were attempting to collect the remaining ransom in cash. The victim was recovered unharmed, and officers seized pistols, ammunition, and masks from the vehicle. Williams, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to kidnap, kidnapping, and receipt of ransom money, is scheduled for sentencing on January 13, 2027.