A woman who handed a supermarket cashier a note saying the man she was with was going to hurt her has been located, authorities said.
The woman entered a Food Lion supermarket in Clover, South Carolina, at around 1.20 p.m. on Thursday, the York County Sheriff's Office said in a post on Facebook.
"She handed the cashier a note, appeared to be in distress, and stated the man she was with was going to hurt her," the sheriff's office said.
The woman then left the supermarket with the man, prompting the supermarket to alert authorities.
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The sheriff's office issued an alert containing the woman's photo and appealed for information.
In an update, the sheriff's office said the woman had been found. "This person has been located and is safe. Thank you for your assistance," the sheriff's office said.
But numerous commenters slammed the sheriff's office, saying publishing the woman's photo may have put her at risk.
"Wow! I'm completely flabbergasted that THIS is how you think to help a woman in a [domestic violence] situation!!! Unreal," wrote Sarah Myers.
Kimberly Inglefield wrote: "This is one of the reasons why so many women are too afraid to seek help.God help her if he sees this!"
Ali Eubanks added: "Please take into consideration over half the comments on this post. this was a very irresponsible thing to post, especially with her picture. she asked for help discreetly and you put her on social media where her abuser could potentially see."
However, others commended the sheriff's office for its efforts.
"Thank God the police posted this so she could be found sooner," Elizabeth Blackwelder wrote. "The man cannot see anything unless Y'all are friends with him."
The York County Sheriff's Office has been contacted for comment.
Nearly 20 people are physically abused by an intimate partner in the U.S. on average every minute—which equates to more than 10 million women and men a year, according to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV).
The NCADV explains that domestic violence "is the willful intimidation, physical assault, battery, sexual assault, and/or other abusive behavior as part of a systematic pattern of power and control perpetrated by one intimate partner against another." It includes physical violence, sexual violence, threats, and emotional abuse.
Victims and survivors can seek help by contacting the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 (SAFE) or visiting the website.
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