Man with hatchet tries to rape woman in Uptown Whole Foods restroom

CHARLOTTE — A man attacked a woman with a hatchet and tried to rape her at about 4 p.m. Friday at the Whole Foods on East Brooklyn Village Avenue in Uptown Charlotte, police said.

Samari Wright, 28, held the 12-inch blade to the Amazon delivery driver’s face, according to an arrest warrant obtained by Channel 9 Crime Reporter Hunter Sáenz.

The assailant tried to prevent her from calling 911 “by knocking the phone out of the victim’s hands,” the report indicated.

The woman managed to escape.

Prosecutors said Monday in court that Wright ran out of the store. There is video of him walking in and out of the women’s bathroom at that time.

Another woman saw the suspect 20 minutes later in the same area exposing himself during a lewd act, which is how the police caught him.

“We’re very relieved that she is physically alright and are working to support her as she recovers from this horrific incident,” said Amazon spokesperson Branden Baribeau. “We’re also working with the police as they investigate this terrible crime.”

“It’s kind of crazy,” said shopper Casey Smith. “We were just commenting on how nice the city was. It’s clean. It’s nice. Seems like lower crime.”

Wright is being held in jail on a $260,000 bond. He faces numerous charges including first-degree kidnapping, attempted first-degree rape, and indecent exposure.

Wright served time in prison for a previous charge of assaulting, inflicting serious injury, and for a robbery before speeding away from police. He served one year and five months in prison and was then given six months of probation.

The arrest warrant from Friday’s assault states he resisted arrest and damaged an officer’s computer.

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