Sex offender found in woods during manhunt, charged with rape

A rape reported in Gordon County led to a manhunt and the arrest of a convicted sex offender, authorities said.

Charles Edward Nobles, 55, is accused of raping someone at a private residence on Gillespie Road near Fairmount, the sheriff’s office said in a news release.

Deputies responding to the residence early Monday morning received a detailed description of the assailant and immediately launched a manhunt in the area.

Nobles was found in a densely wooded area near State Road 53. Deputies arrested him after a brief foot chase, the sheriff’s office said.

Detectives charged Nobles, who has a criminal history and is a registered sex offender, with one count of rape.

He remains in the county jail pending judicial proceedings.

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Ellen Eldridge

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