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A woman was arrested Tuesday after she assaulted an 85-year-old man in a parking lot and stole his winning lottery ticket, according to police.
The incident was reported shortly after 10:30 a.m. at the Ambrosia Landscaping supply and lottery store.
"I saw it all," said Lori Smiley, who saw the incident from the Family Dollar store.
Police said Adriana Pitzer, 23, threw the man to the ground and stole his scratch-off lottery ticket, which was worth $30. She also took $10 in cash.
Smiley, a cashier at the nearby Family Dollar store saw what happened and ran across the street to help the man before chasing Pitzer to King’s Motel, where she lost her, police said.
"I ran after her," Smiley said. "I mean, it could've been my father, my grandfather, It could've been your father, he was there lying the ground. I knew she was going to get caught," Smiley said.
Smiley was a key contributor in helping police identify Pitzer.
Police arrested Pitzer a short time later at the motel, where she was staying with her mother, who was also arrested on a criminal trespass warrant.
Pitzer is charged with robbery, simple assault and theft by unlawful taking. Her bond was set at $25,000 and she was taken to the New Castle Police Department for fingerprinting, but ran when her handcuffs were taken off, police said.
Officers chased Pitzer to a sidewalk outside the department, police said. A Taser was then used on her as she tried to run away.
Pitzer was taken to the Lawrence County Jail. She faces an additional charge of escape, and there were two warrants out for her arrest.
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