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Man accused of abducting teen is person of interest in prior abduction

LOVINGSTON, Va., Aug. 14 (UPI) -- A man charged with kidnapping a missing Virginia teen had been questioned in the disappearance of another teen in 2010, officials said.

Randy Taylor, 48, of Lovingston, who was arraigned Tuesday in the Nelson County Juvenile and Domestic Court for the abduction of Alexis Murphy, 17, was also one of the last people to speak with Samantha Clarke, 19, before she vanished in 2010, ABC's "Good Morning America" reported Wednesday. Clarke still hasn't been found.

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A public defender was assigned to Taylor, who has not entered a plea on the Murphy abduction charge.

"As Randy Taylor is someone that Samantha spoke with immediately prior to her disappearance, he remains someone we are very interested in learning more about," said Diana H. Wheeler, Orange County commonwealth's attorney, adding authorities in Nelson and Orange counties are coordinating and sharing information on the missing teens.

Murphy was last seen at a Lovingston gas station Aug. 3 and her car was found three days later in a movie parking lot in Charlottesville, police said.

Taylor told The (Charlottesville) Hook last year police treated him like a suspect in the Clarke disappearance, costing him custody of his son, his home and his job.

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"The case needs to be solved, but the way they're going about it is ridiculous," Taylor said.

Taylor told The Hook he warned Clarke to stay away from an acquaintance in whom she had expressed romantic interest, saying the acquaintance and his girlfriend said they wanted to beat up Clarke.

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