If someone flashes their headlights at you, drive away.
A Rock Hill, South Carolina, woman claims she was sitting in her vehicle in a Walmart parking lot when two men pulled their car directly in front of her and turned on their high beams to blind her, before quickly jumping out of the car and attempting to open the door.
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A friend of the alleged victim posted a warning on Facebook, which quickly went viral. The friend told NBC Charlotte:
“Someone turned on their high beams and she looked up and she can't really see anything.”Article continues below advertisement
“And then of a sudden, she heard two men on both sides of her car, the passenger and the driver side. As she was pulling away they were still trying to get in her car they were wearing hoodies and they had the hoodie part down past their eyes. Thankfully she locked her doors. It was just too close to home and I wanted people to be aware." "Who knows what would’ve happened if they had gotten her car and she didn’t lock the doors?”Article continues below advertisement
At the time, many people labelled the incident a hoax.
The post was investigated by Rock Hill Police Department (RHPD), and although the woman didn't make a 911 call at the time, their investigation has led them to believe her story is legitimate.
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RHPD wrote:
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"We have confirmed that the incident described above actually happened, but the victim did not want to report it to law enforcement. The individual who responded to our post - created her post as a warning to others to be careful in shopping areas not only at Christmas Time, but all year round." "Her co-worker was the one who had this incident happen to her. I have spoken with the posting individual by phone and we will get with Walmart and try to determine if we can identify the car. YES - there have been many Hoax's in the past, but we made the determination to try and find out the validity of this incident early via Facebook."Article continues below advertisement
"There are comments on here today that were demeaning on a professional law enforcement Facebook page. We request that folks refrain from doing that in the future. People are all the time making assumptions without knowing all the facts. We make posts on Facebook to help gather the facts. Thanks for all help in this matter, and be careful while shopping this season."Facebook commenters were shocked at the idea of this crime...
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"This is why people don't wanna inform people of things that happen to them because other people treat them like they're lying," one user wrote."What do people really have to gain from telling people to watch their back. Even if it isn't true , it still heightens people's senses to their surroundings which doesn't seem too wrong to me. You should always know your surroundings because danger is everywhere ... just saying."Article continues below advertisement
Another user added:
"People need to report crimes right away. If there is an incident where a person was threatened or harmed and it is not reported there's no chance of preventing it from happening to someone else. The next time could be very serious or deadly to someone. Care about other people!"Article continues below advertisement
RHPD's public information officer Mark Bollinger offered advice for those that find themselves in a similar situation:
“If you ever feel like you’re in an unsafe situation, don’t think you’re bothering us. That’s what we’re here for, we’re here to help.”Article continues below advertisement
He advised people against sitting in their cars, especially alone, and when distracted. And if anything does happen, call 911.
“Stay in your car and call us or leave that spot. If the car starts to follow you, go to the nearest police agency.”What do you think of this incident?
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