Woman sexually assaulted by armed man in uptown, police say

A woman was sexually assaulted Friday morning in uptown, according to Charlotte-Mecklenburg police.

The assault happened around 5:30 a.m. in the 200 block of North Caldwell Street, police said. The victim, who wasn’t identified, was walking toward the transit center after working a graveyard shift, when an armed man approached her.

The man walked the woman to another location and sexually assaulted her, police said.

An arrest hasn’t been made in the case, but police are looking for a black man between 30 and 35 years of age. He is 5-foot-6 and 175 pounds. The man has a muscular build and scruffy beard. He was seen wearing a black baseball hat, black hoodie and dark square prescription glasses, police said.

The man also has a tattoo on his right forearm of an upside down letter “U” with two lines underneath, police said.

Friday’s incident comes as police made an arrest in a separate sexual assault case that happened last week.

Robert Thorne, 38, was charged with raping a woman police said he gave a ride to on July 27.

The woman was walking near North Tryon and West 26th Street, when Thorne allegedly offered her a ride. Thorne is accused of driving the woman to a secluded area and sexually assaulting her.

He was arrested in Rock Hill on Friday morning by Rock Hill police, officials said. He also faces charges of kidnapping and assault on a female.

This story was originally published August 3, 2018 at 3:58 PM.