A 14-year-old boy escaped unharmed Tuesday when a man wielding a boxcutter chased him from his lemonade stand.

The boy was selling lemonade about 2:20 p.m. At Stillwater and White Bear Avenues in St. Paul when he was chased, police said. The motive is unclear, said police spokesman Steve Linders.

According to a police report and Linders: The boy was selling lemonade on the northeast corner of the intersection. The suspect and a woman were walking on the other side of the street and crossed toward the boy. They gave him some quarters. It's unclear whether they purchased lemonade.

The man and woman walked away, but then the man turned around and returned toward the boy. The woman was not with the suspect.

The suspect took a boxcutter from his pocket, chased the boy and made a verbal threat, Linders said. The suspect was about 10 to 15 feet away when the boy grabbed his backpack and ran to a nearby auto repair shop for help.

The suspect fled and was not found.

Linders said that a witness corroborated the boy's version of events. A clear description was not available.