MAPLEWOOD, Minn. (FOX 9) - A man is accused of fatally stabbing another man and holding a woman hostage in her Maplewood apartment for days during a "crack smoking binge," according to criminal charges filed in Ramsey County Court.
Lloyd Mathew McKenzie, 52, is charged with second-degree murder and assault after police arrested him Thursday evening.
Fatal Maplewood stabbing
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Police say they responded to a reported stabbing in the 1900 block of County Road D East around 5:50 p.m. in Maplewood on Sept. 4.
Officers then found a man in his 30s suffering from stab wounds to his chest and abdomen in an apartment hallway. He later died during surgery after being taken to the hospital, according to the criminal complaint.
Police then spoke to the victim's girlfriend, who explained that her father stabbed him. She added that they went to check on her mother after not hearing from her for a few days. When they arrived, McKenzie opened the door and stabbed the man while he was in the doorway, the complaint states.
Police then kicked in the door to the apartment and arrested McKenzie when he came out of a back bedroom.
A woman then rushed out of the apartment and thanked officers. She explained that McKenzie no longer lives with her because of past issues, but when she returned home from out of state, she found that McKenzie had broken into her apartment and was living inside.
The woman told police that McKenzie then kept her in the apartment for three days, taking her car keys and cell phone, and only allowing her to leave to go to the mall or grocery store.
McKenzie also used crack during this time and did not allow the woman to wear any clothes, according to the complaint. The woman was also reportedly punched various times and was threatened by McKenzie with a screwdriver.
This continued until her daughter and her daughter's boyfriend arrived outside the apartment door.
The complaint states that when the boyfriend called for McKenzie to "come out and deal with him," McKenzie stabbed him two or three times with a kitchen knife.
Suspect claims self-defense
What they're saying:
Police say that after being read his Miranda rights, McKenzie said that he and the woman were on a "crack smoking binge" for the past few days.
McKenzie claimed he then heard a knock at the door, and saw his daughter's boyfriend point a gun at him and pull the trigger, but that the gun did not fire.
McKenzie said he defended himself, but when police asked if he stabbed the man, McKenzie declined to answer without a lawyer, according to the complaint.
Police later found a serrated kitchen knife with blood on it underneath a bedroom mattress inside the apartment, according to the complaint.
Officers did not report recovering any guns from the incident.
The Source: This story uses information from a criminal complaint filed in Ramsey County Court.