WRCBtv.com | Chattanooga News, Weather & SportsSuspect in Chattanooga hospital after kidnapping, murder

Suspect in Chattanooga hospital after kidnapping, murder

CALHOUN, GORDON COUNTY (WRCB) -- A kidnapping and murder suspect is in Erlanger Medical Center in Chattanooga after Gordon County Sheriff Deputies shot and arrested him Thursday night.

Sheriff Mitch Ralston said 38-year-old Paul Buchannan, of Calhoun, shot two teenage males before forcing a woman in a car and later killing her.

This began when deputies were called to an address on Highway 41 near Resaca around 6:00 p.m. Thursday. They found two men, ages 19 and 17, had been shot. One was shot in the back and the other was shot in the leg.

After officers learned a woman was kidnapped, a large manhunt was launched to find Buchannan in a black Camaro. Detectives found the Camaro next to a railroad track in the Hill City community near the Whitfield County line by tracking the missing woman's cell phone signal.

Officers say they discovered the missing woman's body nearby. Sheriff Ralston said she had been shot in the head.

Shortly before 10:00 p.m., a team of searching officers, search dogs, and deputies confronted Buchannan in a thickly wooded area near the Hill City crossroads.

The sheriff said Buchannan threatened the officers with his pistol and was shot several times.

Buchannan was flown by helicopter to Erlanger, according to the sheriff. Hospital officials, contacted by Channel 3 Eyewitness News, will not confirm Buchannan's condition or treatment.

He has been charged with murder, kidnapping, aggravated assault, and firearms violations. Authorities say they believe Buchannan has previously been arrested for domestic violence. He had been living at the Royal Motel on Highway 53 in Calhoun.

No officers were injured.