Katie Peters was going to the grocery store on February 18 just like any other day. As she returned her cart, however, a man exiting the store at the same time appeared in surveillance footage to harm her in some way.
Peters can be seen reacting to the assault on store surveillance cameras. She told WBAL-TV she initially thought the man had burned her with a cigarette butt. In the video, the man who attacked her can be seen turning around as if unaware as to what happened. Peters, however, said the man had turned to her and said, “It felt like a bee sting, didn’t it?” when she confronted him at the time of the assault.
She told police she then believed, after she confronted the man, that he had stabbed her with a syringe. Anne Arundel County police later received an anonymous tip that resulted in police arresting Thomas Bryon Stemen, 51. Police recovered a “syringe full of liquid from the driver’s side door of his vehicle,” WBAL-TV reported.
“Police initially said they learned the syringe in question contained semen. Officials later said police are unsure if any of those were the syringe in question,” the outlet reported.
Stemen has been ordered without bail on charges of first- and second-degree assault and reckless endangerment. WBAL-TV reported that police detectives “believe there may be additional victims who have yet to report similar incidents.”
Police released a statement regarding the arrest:
On February 18, 2020 we were notified of an assault that occurred in the parking lot of 5570 Shady Side Road in Churchton. An adult female advised she was assaulted and poked with what is believed to be a syringe while walking through the parking lot. Video surveillance was pulled and a white male approximately 50 years old is seen walking near the victim. The suspect bumps into the victim and you can see an exchange between the two. Medical treatment was sought and a syringe stick, can not be ruled out at this time.
On February 25, 2019 detectives received a tip identifying a potential suspect. Through investigative means, Detectives were able to positively identify the suspect as Thomas Bryon Stemen of Churchton, Maryland. Stemen was placed under arrest where he was charged with 1st, and 2nd Degree Assault and Reckless Endangerment.
On February 28, 2020 the Anne Arundel County Police Department learned that the substance in the syringe was semen. Additional testing and investigation are under way. Detectives believe there may be additional victims who have yet to report similar incidents. This investigation is extremely active additional charges may be applicable.
“This investigation is extremely active additional charges may be applicable,” the police department said on Twitter.
The New York Post reported that Stemen is being held in the Jennifer Road Detention Center.
WBAL-TV interviewed a man who said he knew Peters, telling the outlet she is “not doing well” and is dealing with “a lot of stress” due to the incident. It so far appears as though she has suffered no adverse physical effects from the assault.