A night out in downtown Murphy took a sharp turn on April 26 when, according to police, a man who had been kicked out of a local restaurant came back with a lawnmower blade turned into a makeshift machete and threatened the owner. The confrontation at a Chevelles Restaurant & Bar location left the owner badly shaken but, investigators say, not physically cut.
How police say it happened
Police and court documents identify the suspect as 45-year-old Gabriel Lowman. According to investigators, staff at the restaurant had cut him off for the night and asked him to leave. Officers say that instead of calling it quits, Lowman headed to a parking lot, grabbed "a lawnmower blade fabricated into a machete," then forced his way back inside the business.
Investigators say he kicked down the owner’s office door and brandished the blade, allegedly using it to terrorize the owner. No cuts were reported, but the incident quickly moved from barroom trouble to a felony case.
Lowman has been charged with assault with a deadly weapon, felony breaking and entering to terrorize or injure, second-degree trespassing, injury to real property and disorderly conduct. Court records show a $15,000 bond was initially set and later revoked, according to The Charlotte Observer.
Where it happened
Per Chevelles Restaurant & Bar, the Murphy location operates in downtown Murphy. The Town of Murphy's website lists Tim Lominac as the city's chief of police, the official identified in coverage of the case.
Case status
Court records and local reporting indicate Lowman faces multiple felony and misdemeanor counts in Cherokee County court. The case remains active, and while the court initially set a $15,000 bond before revoking it, officials have not publicly released a schedule for upcoming hearings, according to The Charlotte Observer.
Murphy police and the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office have not released further details. This story will be updated if additional records or official statements are made public.
