Log in to WRAL.com with one click using your favorite social network:
OR
Log in using your WRAL.com account:



Wrong email/password combination.

Forgot password?

Register with WRAL.com using your favorite social network:
OR
Register for a WRAL.com account using our web form.

Login Options

7:25 p.m. • 2-10-12

Weather Forecast for Raleigh

  • Sat: Mostly Cloudy.
    • Hi: 52° F
  • Sun: Clear.
    • Hi: 43° F
  • Mon: Mostly Cloudy.
    • Hi: 50° F

Other Locations

> 7 Day Forecast

Doppler Image

Marketplace Links

Social Links

Main Menu

Police Arrest Wilmington Man for Raleigh Kidnappings


e-mail print friendly
Police Arrest Wilmington Man for Raleigh Kidnappings
Police Arrest Wilmington Man for Raleigh Kidnappings

A Wilmington man was arrested and charged Thursday in connection with two abductions and multiple robberies that occurred Monday afternoon and Wednesday night.

Omar Cortez Sharpe, 26, has also been charged in connection with two rapes and robberies that occurred previously in Raleigh, and he faces additional charges in Wilmington, police said.

He is being held under a $4.8 million bond.

Sharpe is charged with two counts of second-degree kidnapping and two counts of robbery with a dangerous weapon in connection with the abduction of a woman and her daughter who had stopped for pizza at Tower Shopping Center Wednesday night.

Sharpe entered their SUV while the two victims were inside a restaurant and hid until after they returned, police said.

The two counts of robbery stem from Sharp allegedly demanding the woman make two withdrawals from an ATM before releasing her and her daughter. He was armed with a handgun during the crimes, police said.

Sharpe is also charged with one count of second-degree kidnapping and two counts of robbery with a dangerous weapon in connection with the abduction of a woman from a Wal-Mart parking lot on June 25.

Sharpe entered the victim’s vehicle and forced her to drive to various locations, eventually demanding that she make two withdrawals from an ATM before releasing her, police said.

The two counts of robbery stem from the fact that the suspect demanded that the victim make two ATM withdrawals. Sharpe was armed with a handgun during the crimes.

Sharpe is charged with one count of first-degree kidnapping, one count of first-degree rape and one count of robbery with a dangerous weapon in connection with the abduction of a woman who was leaving an apartment on Hylton Drive.

The abduction occurred at approximately 4 a.m. on June 24.

The suspect pushed the victim into the vehicle, took her car keys and drove her away from the apartment complex’s parking lot. After driving around in the area for a short period of time, the suspect took the victim to the Green Road Park, where he raped her.

After the rape, the suspect ordered the victim back into the car. He again began to drive but the victim managed to escape and to summon help from Raleigh Police Department officers she located in the area. After the victim escaped, the suspect fled in her car.

Sharpe was armed with a handgun during the crimes.

He is charged with one count of first-degree rape and one count of robbery with a dangerous weapon in connection with crimes that began with an abduction in Wilmington on June 16.

Sharpe transported his victim to Raleigh, where he subsequently raped her in a wooded area near Bonneville Court, according to police. The suspect subsequently released the victim shortly after 10 a.m. at a nearby location and took her car. He was armed with a handgun during the crimes.

Sharpe was taken into custody without further incident at Tower Shopping Center shortly after noon Thursday by members of the Raleigh Police Department.

He had previous convictions dating back to 1998 for assaulting females, assault with a deadly weapon, shoplifting, trespassing and larceny, according to court records.

RELATED TOPICS: Raleigh

e-mail print friendly

210 Comments


WRAL.com welcomes your comments on this story. All comments are moderated prior to publication based on our posting guidelines. Please review them prior to posting and if your message is not approved.

View Comments VIEW ALL 210 COMMENTS

This story is closed for comments.

Latest Comments
"I am originally from the Bay Area lived here many many years. I loved North Carolina and still do. But I am sick to death of the increase crime. I'm not kidding the crime seems to be getting worse here then in the Bay Area. I am so disgusted with the crime in this wonderfull state. Something has to be done about it. What? I don't know. Not an expert just a concerned citizen. Its catching up with Oakland and that is a very bad thing."

Not even close, Oakland is way ahead...

http://durham.areaconnect.com/crime/compare.htm?c1=Oakland&s1=CA&c2=Raleigh&s2=NC

No need for a trial......just fry him!!!

I had doubts earlier this week this guy would get caught.

Great job RPD !!

It's all about the media or the information age. You only know what available to you...and all information is not available. So becareful out there...

I'm also a Bay Area transplant! I agree that the crime is getting worst here. In Oakland I watched the city turn from a nice quiet area, back in the 70's, into a maze of confussion and violence. That seems to also be the fate of this area. It appears that the South is usually a decade behind when it comes to societal issues. Not to be critical of the South, but the South is more of a bible belt, and for a long time had managed to stay away from a lot of the social problems that are a problem up North and out West. The South also has had more of a conservative imprint stamped to it. And please do not let my use of the world conservative spark a political debate. Trust me, you win. I live to fish period. Just a view I have. Let me also say this, I have no intentions of returning to Oakland!

View Comments VIEW ALL 210 COMMENTS
Report It

Multimedia

Click Here