Three men are charged with kidnapping and robbery after allegedly attacking three people in a Waterboro home Thursday afternoon.

The men – Angel Alicea, 25, of Lawrenceville, Georgia, and Samuel Hilton, 23, and Anyheuris Mota-Speing, 23, both of Lawrence, Massachusetts – drove to a home on Northeast Road in Waterboro in an attempt to steal marijuana, but were arrested after a victim they allegedly kidnapped escaped from their car in Newfield and yelled for help.

“The out-of-state men were under the apparent misconception that there was a large amount of marijuana at the Waterboro residence and they wanted it,” York County Sheriff William King said in a news release.

King said the three men went to the home but only two went inside. The people in the home told the men they did not have a large amount of marijuana, which angered the suspects, he said. The men ordered the three victims to lie on the floor, where they were bound with duct tape while the suspects searched the house.

When one of the victims appeared to resist, one of the suspects struck him on the head with a gun, King said. One victim was dragged down a flight of stairs and all were told they would be burned with a blowtorch if they did not give up their stash of marijuana, he said.

“One of the victims concocted a story that the marijuana was in the possession of an ‘associate’ and pointed to a random vehicle that was passing the house,” King said. “The quick-thinking victim told the men the stash of marijuana was in the vehicle that was traveling down the road.”

The suspects then rushed into their car, taking one victim with them as they tried to catch up to the passing car, King said. The random car made it into Newfield before the suspects’ car caught up to it. As the cars slowed down, the victim jumped from the car and started yelling for help, according to King.

Alicea, Hilton and Mota-Speing were arrested after their car was stopped by Sanford police on Route 202. They were taken to the York County Jail and made initial court appearances Friday. Bail for Mota-Speing was set at $250,000, and bail for Alicea and Hilton was set at $150,000 each.

None of the victims required medical attention. King said his department continues to investigate the incident.

Gillian Graham can be contacted at 791-6315 or at:

ggraham@pressherald.com

Twitter: grahamgillian