Deputies: China Grove man interested in cannibalism accused of plotting woman’s death

ROWAN COUNTY, N.C. — A man from China Grove is accused of attacking a woman with a knife and admitting he intended to kill her, according to the Rowan County Sheriff’s Office. Now, the woman who picked the victim up after the incident is speaking to Channel 9 in an exclusive interview.

Deputies said they were called Wednesday by a woman who said she was attacked by Hunter Chase Nance. She said she had met Nance, 24, earlier in the day when he approached her at a local gas station, and the two exchanged phone numbers.

Nance offered to pick up the woman later in the day and bring her back to his home. Deputies said the woman agreed, and when they walked inside, Nance locked the door and attacked her with a knife. She then fought back and was able to get the knife away from Nance, suffering cuts on her hands before escaping the home.

Residents in the area called 911 to report a hurt woman walking on the road.

Deputies found Nance at his home on Peaceful Lane outside of China Grove. After speaking with Nance, deputies learned his intentions of killing the woman, according to the Rowan County Sheriff’s Office.

Nance also admitted that he chose the woman randomly and wanted to “kill for the thrill,” according to deputies. He described the gory details of his plans, which included wanting to mutilate her body and leave it for passing cars to see, deputies said.

Nance also expressed interest in cannibalism, according to the detective he spoke with.

Only on 9: ‘Get in the car, get in the car’

Channel 9′s Hannah Goetz spoke to the person who picked the woman up after the incident. She did not want to show her face or use her name, but said she and other people in the area are scared.

“I looked at her in my rearview mirror and thought, ‘she doesn’t look good,‘” she told Goetz.

The woman said she was driving down Peaceful Lane on Wednesday when she saw a young woman walking quickly with bloody hands.

“I said ‘are you OK?’ She was shaking and crying. And she said ‘yeah, I’ll be fine,’ and I said ‘what happened?’ and she was like, ‘the guy in the house down there just stabbed me,’” she said.

While trying to help the young woman, she said a car pulled up behind them from the direction of Nance’s house on the dead-end street.

“We saw the headlights pulling up and she said ‘I think that’s him’ and I said ‘get in the car, get in the car,’” she said.

She said she drove the young woman to a Circle K gas station, where they saw police in the parking lot. That’s when the case’s disturbing details started to emerge.

“If we had not picked her up, and that was him coming down the road, I don’t know what would have happened to her,” she told Goetz.

In addition to his intentions with her, investigators said Nance also mentioned a desire to kill other people.

“I was in shock,″ said neighbor Richard Dawson. “I see him on the road driving down the road, you’ll just wave and he’ll wave back at you.”

People who have lived by Nance and his parents for 20 years told Goetz it’s not something you expect from a quiet neighborhood filled with young kids.

“I know this is something I am still running through my mind, how it happened, why it happened, just luckily, luckily, thankfully that girl got away,” Dawson said.

Goetz learned Nance did not have a criminal background. He is facing charges of false imprisonment and assault with a deadly weapon. He is also facing an additional charge of first-degree kidnapping and is currently being held under a $600,000 secured bond.

On Monday, Nance was served a warrant for an additional charge of attempted murder for the incident. He was given an additional $600,000 bond, bringing the total to $1.2 million.

His next court date is scheduled for March 8.

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