‘I’m shocked’: Woman says man went to pet her dog but attacked her instead

HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. — A woman’s morning walk with her dog took a scary turn when a man groped her and stole her phone earlier this week.

Channel 9′s Erika Jackson learned that officers in Huntersville caught the suspect not too far away, but neighbors say they’re shocked to hear about the incident.

It happened early Monday near Reece Boulevard and Kincey Avenue. According to court documents, the victim told police she was walking her dog when a man gestured to her to pet her pup. Instead, the suspect pulled down the woman’s pants and then took her phone.

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Huntersville police say they arrested the suspect, Kenny Jackson, about a mile away at the intersection of Blossom Hill Drive and Merry Chase Lane.

Shawn Dennis lives near the scene where Jackson was caught.

“It’s horrifying. I run out here probably for five days a week, and I’ve never seen or heard anything like this before,” Dennis told Channel 9.

The Huntersville Police Department said this isn’t the first time Jackson made a sexual gesture toward someone and then ran off. Officers said Jackson was found in the area in June after a different sexual battery incident.

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Diana Harris walks her dog along the same route, and she said she may change her routine.

“I’m shocked because I never encountered anything. I walk all of this, even late nights, and never ever came in contact with anybody who would harm us or anything,” Harris said.

Jackson is in the Mecklenburg County jail on charges of common law robbery, sexual battery, and resisting a public officer.

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