North Carolina Woman Attacked on Trail; Suspect’s $5,000 Bond Draws Backlash

On May 21, a man allegedly attacked a woman while she was running in the Bent Creek Experimental Forest in North Carolina. Dillon James Curtis, 29, is accused of beating Emily Sutherland, 27, and threatening to drag her into the woods.

While Curtis was arrested the following day, he was only charged with four misdemeanors, including assault on a female, communicating threats, false imprisonment, and interfering with emergency communication. His bond was set at only $5,000, which sparked outrage on social media.

As people began questioning the low bond amount, Matt Van Swol, a North Carolina-based content creator and former nuclear scientist, said Curtis had a history of violent crimes. According to him, the accused had been arrested 15 times in the past.

Van Swol said Curtis faced a second-degree kidnapping charge in July 2025, but was released from jail after posting a $4,500 bond. “Please understand...a man already on bond for FELONY KIDNAPPING tried to kidnap a woman off an Asheville trail and was charged with only FOUR MISDEMEANORS,” Van Swol wrote, adding, “He will be out and terrorizing more women soon.”

Van Swol’s followers echoed similar sentiments in their comments. One individual wrote, “Woke judges need to be held accountable for letting violent offenders back on the street. It's as if they want more innocent Americans to be hurt or die.”

Another replied, “The only reason a judge would release a criminal like this back into the community is because that judge wants to create as much mayhem in society as possible, especially against innocent women & children.”

Following the outrage, the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office announced on May 24 that an additional charge had been filed against Curtis. He now faces a felony count of second-degree kidnapping, along with four misdemeanors. His bond has been revoked, and he is being held at the Buncombe County Detention Center.

In an interview with the Citizen Times, Sutherland said she was running in the Bent Creek Experimental Forest when she saw Curtis approaching her. “I saw him walking, running at me. Initially, I thought it was someone trying to warn me about a bear,” she said.

Sutherland said Curtis then screamed at her and punched her. “I backed up. I was like, 'what's your problem?' He started calling me other girls' names. He started screaming at me. It wasn't super coherent. He came at me again. I backed up again,” she said.

Curtis allegedly threatened to knock her out and drag her to the woods. While Sutherland dialed 911, the accused attempted to snatch her phone. The victim then began to scream for help, while the man continued to attack her.

“I just started screaming as loudly as I possibly could for help. Probably three, four minutes, I was screaming. He was just threatening me and lunging at me,” Sutherland said. The victim was rescued by two mountain bikers, Trevor and Harvest, who arrived at the scene. They eventually dropped her back at her car.