MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A Memphis man was charged with especially aggravated robbery after police said he stabbed and beat his mother at her home in Frayser.
Investigators said Ray White was waiting inside his mother’s house in the 2200 block of Hillside Avenue Thursday night.
They said he stabbed her and took her purse.
His mother said he wanted money to buy drugs.
“He was screaming ‘what’s the number, what’s the number?’ He wanted the number to her credit card,” said a neighbor.
Neighbors said they watched as Ray White beat and choked his mother in her driveway and tried to drag her back inside her house.
They said White still had a knife in his hand and they were afraid to help.
“I thought he was going to kill her and I tried to say something to him, but he was looking so crazy,” said a neighbor.
The mother was able to fight off her son and get away in her car.
She flagged down an officer nearby St. Elmo and Overton Crossing.
She is expected to be okay.
The Family Safety Center in Memphis said drugs were involved in a lot of the elder abuse cases it handles.
Directors said drugs don’t cause domestic violence, but could make it a lot worse.
“You’re more likely to be the victim of a homicide if there are substance abuse issues involved as opposed to not,” said Vernetta Eddleman, Director of Client Services.
If you have been threatened or abused by a family member, you are urged to call the Family Safety Center at 901-222-4400 for help.