Man with 'multiple face tattoos' arrested, accused of sexual assault at boardinghouse

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A man with multiple distinct facial tattoos was arrested after he was accused of sexually assaulting a woman at an east Charlotte boardinghouse.

People who live in the boarding house told Channel 9 the woman screamed, and then 40-year-old Tommy Williamson ran away naked with a knife in his hand.

Williamson has been charged with attempted rape, assault and kidnapping.

The woman was trying to help the convicted felon at the home on Shamrock Drive.

“That's awful, especially because all the ones who are actually trying, they take the rap for that,” neighbor Ryan Sage said.

The men who live in the boarding home wouldn't speak on camera to Channel 9, but they said they live in a transitional home for convicts and recovering addicts.

They described the victim as a social worker who checks in on Williamson regularly.

According to police, the woman was in the home talking to Williamson when he threatened and sexually assaulted her.

“I'm not too surprised because of the area,” Sage said. “It's still off-putting because of the proximity to my house.”

Sage, who was walking home from a nearby park, told Channel 9 he lives next door to the boardinghouse.

“There's definitely a stigma from it,” Sage said. “You know, if I'm walking with another family, we're like, let's cross over and walk on the other side of the street to this area when really you don't know who they are. Obviously, they're trying, or they wouldn't be there.”

Williamson was convicted in 2012 of robbery, assault and possessing a weapon of mass destruction.

According to court records, his sentence was suspended and he was placed on probation.

Williamson will be in court on Monday.

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