Coleman Subway manager Prabha Sharma, says Ken Lowe, 44, the man who is charged with assaulting her with a piece of lumber, would often come into the store asking for free food.
“He used to come in and ask for coffee,” said Sharma. “He would come ask the owner too for coffee or cookies and we’d give them to him. We felt sorry for the guy.”
Sharma suffered a broken arm at about 7:30 a.m. on March 9 when Lowe entered Subway and struck her. He fled the scene but was later arrested.
She said she’d be wearing a cast for the next two months.
“He just walked in with a two-by-four and hit me and left. The whole thing took four seconds,” said Sharma. “He never even said a single word.”
There was only one customer in the store at the time of the incident. Sharma credits him with scaring off her assailant.
“When I screamed the customer turned and ran after him but he was gone,” she said.
Lowe had reportedly entered the Esso gas station in Coleman brandishing a piece of wood the day before the assault.
He appeared in court on March 17 on two counts of assault, two counts of breach of probation, two counts of breach of undertaking and possession of a weapon. He also had outstanding warrants for his arrest.
A representative from the Crowsnest Pass RCMP said Lowe remains in custody and is scheduled for another court appearance on April 14.