FERNDALE, Wash. – A man who viciously slashed a Whatcom Educational CU member to within inches of her life while she was withdrawing cash at the ATM was sentenced yesterday to 10 years in prison.
The victim, Samantha Shields, 25, was withdrawing money from the ATM at the credit union on the morning of July 28, when Joseph Smith came up behind her. He slashed her several times with a box cutter, inflicting a 4-inch gash and several other cuts on Shields' neck and jaw. The wounds required more than 50 stitches.
"He wasn't just trying to take my money," she said. "I thought he was trying to kill me."
A cleaning crew working inside the credit union heard her screams and chased off the attacker, who ran off without taking anything from her.
Smith was arrested a short time later after Ferndale police used dogs to track a scent from the credit union.
