A 45-year old woman was shot and killed last night during an armed robbery at the Thrift Motel, located on North Tryon Street. The robbery occurred shortly before 1:30 am when three black males entered the motel property with guns.The hotel manager, Anita Rychlik, was shot in the head during the robbery and died. Her husband, who is the motel's security guard, was pistol whipped during the robbery and suffered injuries.
A second woman at the motel was robbed but she was not injured. In addition, a man inadvertently interrupted the robbery as it was going down and the robbers shot at him but he escaped unharmed. Witnesses say the three suspects fled the scene on foot.
Please call Crime Stoppers if you have any information @ 704-334-1600.