Law enforcement says an 81-year-old husband had a severe abrasion to his face, and his 78-year-old wife suffered severe swelling to her face.
Authorities said a relative of the couple injured in the home invasion fired a gun in an effort to scare the attacker away.
Kay Baker says she interacted with the suspect, Thomas Wright, hours before the string of incidents.
She says that when she arrived at work on Wednesday at the BP station on US 701, she saw Wright and learned that he had spent all night sleeping on an outside bench.
"I said, 'You can't hang out here. You're going to have to leave."
A few hours later, Baker says he returned to the store and was irate.
"He came back, ran through the store, hollering, 'Have you got a Bible? " I need to read the Bible," said Baker.
Four Oaks police officers responded to the convenience store after a complaint of a man loitering and refusing to leave. When officers arrived on the scene, Wright was gone.
Law enforcement was called around 10:50 a.m. for a home invasion on Devil's Racetrack Road. That's where they say the elderly couple lives who were attacked by Wright.
"Once I found out he did it, I said 'Oh my god,'" said Baker.
The sheriff's office said Wright allegedly forced his way into another nearby home. An elderly woman there said the suspect spoke to her, but she was not able to understand him. He then walked off. The woman was not injured.
Wright ran off when a deputy arrived in the area and was later caught after a foot chase.
The sheriff's office said Wright allegedly also broke into two cars but was unsuccessful in stealing them. He was also believed to be responsible for an earlier Wednesday incident where someone was slapping at passing cars while walking along Devil's Racetrack Road.
Wright was charged with several felonies, including two counts of breaking and entering with intent to terrorize or injure, two counts of assault inflicting serious bodily injury, and two counts of attempted felony larceny related to the attempted vehicle thefts.
The sheriff's office said the home invasions appeared to be random.
Wright, who has a criminal past in Johnston and Wake counties, was booked into the Johnston County Detention Center.
Stay on top of breaking news stories with the ABC11 News App
He is scheduled to go before a judge on Friday.