Police said a karate instructor fended off a would-be kidnapper after he chased a woman into a North Carolina karate studio this week.
WSOC-TV reported that police arrested 46-year-old August Williams, who is accused of chasing a woman into the Bushiken Karate Charlotte Dojo in an attempt to kidnap her.
Williams was reportedly intercepted by Randall Ephraim, the studio’s sensei, before running out of the studio, according to the outlet. Ephraim was able to gain control of Williams before police could arrest him.
“He was just punching at everything from walls to cars, everything,” Ephraim said, adding that it was challenging to rein in Williams. “He was very strong… very, very strong. He weighed at least 200 (pounds) and some change, under the influence; very strong powerful individual.”
Police told WSOC-TV that it lucky the incident occurred at a karate studio.
“It’s a great thing the people in there were able to help defend her, extremely lucky that it was a karate studio and usually you don’t see a suspect act like this,” said Capt. JD Thomas of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department.
Authorities said Williams was on drugs at the time of the assault. He has been arrested previously for drugs and assault, according to WSOC-TV.