By Beth Alston

AMERICUS — An incident that morphed into legendary proportions through the local gossip mill last week has finally been clarified by local authorities.
Sumter County Sheriff’s Chief Deputy, Col. Eric Bryant, told the Times-Recorder that they received a call around 5:40 p.m. on Tuesday, March 5, to respond to a residence on Cantey Lane, on the Sumter County side of Lake Blackshear. A woman had called 911 after someone followed her home. As she turned into the driveway of her residence, the vehicle behind her did the same. She told authorities the man got out of his vehicle and started walking toward her boat. That’s when she drove away and called 911.
When deputies arrived on the scene, they learned that the same man had been noticed by several other residents of the neighborhood, driving around the area that day. The man was located in the backyard of a nearby residence, down near the water, Bryant said.
“He was sitting in his car, ‘dancing,’ and was so out of it he thought he was in Atlanta,” Bryant said.
The man, who was apparently under the influence, was identified as William Matthew Cottrell, 35, of Jonesboro. He was arrested and charged with possession of a Schedule I controlled substance (crystal meth) and criminal trespass, and was taken to the Sumter County Jail where he remains as of March 11.
Bryant said that no one was kidnapped in the incident and no ropes were found in Cottrell’s vehicle, according to the incident report