A Kamloops man who suffered serious injuries after being slashed with a machete during a robbery last week said his attacker yelled, “You’re going to die!” while cutting his head and arm.
Chris Lawrence told KTW he was working at the U-District Liquor Store on Thursday, March 19, when a man walked in with a duffel bag.
“He was acting kind of suspicious and bringing bottles up,” Lawrence said, noting the man started putting bottles into his duffel bag before he had paid.
“I told him, that’s not how this works. At that point, he pulled a machete-type thing, told me I was going to die and started waving at me with it.”
Lawrence, who manages the private liquor store in the Landmark Centre across from Thompson Rivers University, said the attacker then began hitting him with the blade.
“He hit me in the head and then in my forearm three times, telling me, ‘You’re going to die?’” Lawrence said, explaining the blows to his arm came as he was protecting his head.
Lawrence described his injuries as “serious lacerations.” He is recovering at home after receiving dozens of staples and stitches in hospital.
Lawrence also praised the paramedics who tended to him and the doctors at Royal Inland Hospital who treated his injuries.
“At this point, I’m taking it one day at a time,” he said. “I have all intentions of going back to work.”
William Paul Bolton, 33, was arrested on Friday, March 20. He is facing charges of attempted murder, aggravated assault and robbery.
