KANSAS CITY —A homeless man faces felony charges after he entered a south Kansas City church, sought assistance and stabbed a church member in the chest on Sunday morning, according to Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker.
Jarod A. Hill, 24, faces Assault in the 1st Degree and Armed Criminal Action charges.
According to court records, close to 11 a.m. Sunday, Kansas City Police Department officers were dispatched to a reported knife attack at the church. Officers located a victim suffering from a stab wound to his chest. They also found several members of the church on top of the suspect, the defendant Jarod Hill.
Police took Hill into custody. While being placed into a transport wagon, he attempted to grab a police officer's gun. Witnesses told police that it appeared that the defendant had pitched a tent nearby and was upset that someone had spray painted the tent. The victim attempted to help the defendant.
Other members of the church told the defendant to leave or they would call police. The victim was standing next to Hill when he put the victim into a headlock and pulled out a knife. Hill began to stab the victim in the chest. They struggled over the knife and other church members helped to restrain the defendant until police arrived.
Video from the church corroborated the accounts of the victim and witnesses, according to court documents.
The police are continuing to investigate the incident at First Church of the Nazarene, located at 118th and State Line Road. The defendant is being held on a $100,000 cash bond.