Woman accused of attacking police officer with a knife

By WLOS Staff

Click here for updates on this story

    WAYNESVILLE, North Carolina (WLOS) — A woman has been arrested after police say she attacked an officer with a knife in Waynesville.

The Waynesville Police Department says officers responded to the report of a person with a knife along Russ Avenue at around 12:30 p.m. on Jan. 24, 2022.

Police said when an officer arrived, 30-year-old Faith Nicole Wilson refused commands to leave the road, began yelling obscenities at the officer and “begged him to shoot her.”

Police say she then pulled out a knife and threatened to kill the officer, lunging at him and ignoring commands to drop the weapon.

Another responding officer used his vehicle to block Wilson from attacking the officer on foot, police said in a news release. Eventually, the second officer struck Wilson at a low speed, knocking her to the ground.

While trying to wrestle away the knife, police say Wilson stabbed an officer’s hand. She was eventually handcuffed and taken into custody.

Part of the encounter and the arrest was captured on witness video.

“The officers exercised great restraint in not shooting her as she was charging with a knife,” Chief David Adams said. “I think that’s the best scenario that played out. No one is seriously injured. No one is dead. So, the officers did a phenomenal job preventing a tragedy.”

Wilson is charged with assault with a deadly weapon, assault with physical injury to a law enforcement officer, and resisting a public officer.

She’s in jail on a $150,000 bond and is receiving an evaluation, police said.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.