Man arrested for 2 attempted abductions over holiday weekend

NEWARK, Del. (WTXF) - The man who police say tried to abduct two women on the same block - hours apart, over the holiday weekend - is under arrest in Delaware.

Newark Police say they got many tips about Joseph B. Rudge which led them to the 1200 block of N. Claymont Street in Wilmington. That's where the Newark Police SWAT team served a search warrant and arrested Rudge without incident.

Police reported that at 11:20pm Sunday, a 28-year-old University of Delaware student was unloading packages from her car when a man grabbed her and tried to put a rag saturated with an "unknown chemical" around her mouth. She was able to fight him off and he ran away.

Then, 100 yards down E. Main Street away at 3:30am Monday, police say the same man attacked a 61-year-old woman by trying to grab her neck and push her into her car. Again, she woman was able to fight the attacker off and he ran away.

Neither victim needed medical attention.

Rudge faces two counts of attempted kidnapping, attempted carjacking, failure to re-register as a sex offender, attempted theft and two counts of offensive touching.

He's at the Howard R. Young Correctional Institute in lieu of $48,700 secured bond.