Police arrested RI man for alleged kidnapping

MIDDLETOWN, R.I. -- Police have accused a 35-year-old Providence man of abducting a 14-year-old girl in Rhode Island, then bringing her to New Bedford, Mass., and sexually assaulting her.

Lawrence Clay was ordered held without bail after an arraignment Friday in Rhode Island, where he was charged with kidnapping a minor across state lines.

Prosecutors said Clay approached the girl early Thursday morning in Middletown and made a threat involving a firearm. Investigators allege the girl was sexually assaulted before she was abandoned in New Bedford.

Clay denied abducting or assaulting the girl during a court hearing. It was unclear Friday whether he had a defense attorney.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)