WILKES-BARRE, Pa. — A Pennsylvania woman is accused of stabbing another woman in a grocery store parking lot while her children watched, leaving them unattended as she took the victim’s vehicle, authorities said.
Natasha Watson, 33, was charged with multiple counts of aggravated assault, robbery of a motor vehicle and fleeing from officers, WBRE-TV reported.
According to a criminal complaint, the victim, identified as Danielle Richard, suffered a punctured lung and stab wounds in her back and shoulder areas, the Times Leader of Wilkes-Barre reported. She was taken to an area hospital and stabilized, according to the newspaper.
Police responded to a Save A Lot parking lot in Wilkes-Barre at about 1 p.m. EDT on Thursday, WBRE reported.
According to the complaint, Richard said she was putting groceries in the trunk of her red Honda Civic and was returning her cart to the store when Watson approached and asked for directions to a Dollar Tree retail outlet, the Times Leader reported.
Richard provided directions, but then Watson got “a crazy look in her eyes” and began to stab the woman, according to court documents.
Police said that, as Watson allegedly stabbed the victim, the children she was with were yelling “Please stop,” the Times Leader reported. According to court documents, Watson grabbed Richard’s car keys, but when the victim wrestled them back, Watson became angry and stabbed her several more times, the newspaper reported.
Police said Watson was able to grab the keys back and entered Richard’s car, WOLF-TV reported. She attempted to load the children into the vehicle but left them in the parking lot when she heard police sirens, according to the television station.
Wilkes-Barre police officers chased after Watson but broke off the pursuit because they feared for other motorists’ safety because she was driving erratically, WBRE reported.
Watson fled north but eventually crashed the Honda near a building in Plains Township that housed several businesses, according to police.
She was arraigned Thursday night and, unable to post $250,000 bail, was taken to the Luzerne County Correctional Facility, the Times Leader reported.