‘One-man crime spree’ included carjacking, dragging mall patron, wrecking street sweeper

A Garner man was sentenced to 20 years prison after robbing a Wal-Mart, fleeing on a bicycle, stealing and crashing a Raleigh street sweeper and then dragging a carjacking victim across a mall parking lot while trying to escape.

Thomas Kyle Cauther, 31, pleaded guilty to robbery and carjacking charges Thursday in an episode last year that started at a Raleigh Wal-Mart and finished in Crabtree Valley Mall.

In May 2023, Cauther smashed an electronics display case at the Wal-Mart on Fayetteville Road and stole two iPhones, federal prosecutors said in a Thursday news release. He threatened a store employee with a knife and then fled on a bicycle.

He pedaled to Ramsgate Street and Lineberry Drive, the release said, where he then stole a city truck with a street sweeper attached, wrecking it in the parking deck at Crabtree mall.

With the truck out of commission, the release said, Cauther then pulled a woman out of her car and attempted to drive away while she was still tangled in the door. She was dragged through the parking area and suffered numerous broken bones. She was later hospitalized.

Meanwhile, OnStar system operators were able to disable the stolen car while police pursued Cauther, leading to his arrest.

“This defendant was a one-man crime spree, threatening a store clerk, crashing a city truck and dragging a woman across a shopping center parking lot,” said U.S. Attorney Michael Easley.

“Cauther’s spree caused unspeakable trauma to victims and wrecked a city street sweeper. Today, it is Cauther whose been swept off the streets — for the next 20 years.”