Suspect on the loose who reportedly pulled woman from home in Gaston Co. break-in

STANLEY, N.C. — Investigators are searching for a suspect in Stanley after they said he pulled a woman from her home in a break-in.

Officials told Channel 9 the stranger reportedly broke into the woman’s home along Murphy Street off Hovis Road around 9 a.m. They said the woman fought back, and the suspect ran. There was one other person inside the home when it happened.

Officials said the man who dragged the woman outside the home in a chokehold is 6 feet 5 inches tall.

Her fiance, who was also home at the time, told emergency dispatch what happened.

"(He) came up, grabbed her, muffled her mouth and started dragging her out of the house," he told a 911 dispatcher. "She was able to throw a glass on the floor and it shattered, which woke me up and he started to drag her outside."

The fiance got up and ran outside. The suspect fled, and she rushed back inside.

"She didn't deserve that," neighbor Liddy Stiles said. "I'm just really shocked. I'm appalled."

Neighbors said it is a quiet community and nothing bad ever happens.

"There are no indications that it is widespread,” Stanley police Capt. Scott Wright said. “It's just an isolated incident at this time."

The intruder is still on the loose.

K-9 officers were out in the area, not far from Stanley Middle School, searching for that suspect. Police told us they believe he has since left the area, but we did still see officers patrolling late Tuesday afternoon.

Read more top trending stories on wsoctv.com:

• 3 found dead in NC pool
• Mother killed in crash while driving children to Splash Pad in Hickory
• City approves 20-story office tower in Midtown
• Wife shoots, kills woman after finding her with husband in Kershaw Co., sources say
• Chief Putney 'disappointed' after CMPD officer charged with DWI

Cox Media Group