Photo: Zachry Seward (Courtesy Washington County Sheriff)
A Northwest Arkansas homeless man has been arrested and is facing attempted murder charges after an afternoon stabbing of a probation officer in Fayetteville, according to Kark news.
Shortly after 12 noon on Tuesday, Fayetteville police officers responded to an assault call at the Washington/Madison County Drug and Diversion Court. A preliminary report from the prosecutor’s office says that a probation officer was attacked in her office by Zachry Seward, 30.
Seward allegedly parked his vehicle in front of the building, left it running, and ran to the front door of the building. He reportedly went to her office and stabbed her twice in the left leg and once at the base of the skull behind the right ear.
A drug counselor entered the office and “observed the probation officer sitting in her desk chair with Seward standing over her and holding her arms.” Drug counselors and another probation officer subdued and handcuffed the suspect.
A tourniquet was applied to the victim’s leg before she was transported to the hospital. The preliminary report states that she is expected to survive the injuries.
Seward was a probationer and the officer he allegedly stabbed was his former parole officer. Seward “graduated the drug court program” in 2018 and was off probation for approximately five months. Investigators note that he had no reason to appear in the drug court building today.
Witnesses said Seward was “yelling that people were out to get him and drones were following him.” He also reportedly yelled that the drug court “ruined his life” and “was going to pay.” After his arrest, he told investigators that he has been “the subject of continuous surveillance by the drug court.” He added that he drove by the court building but “did not plan to stop initially.”
The suspect’s criminal history shows numerous prior charges, including aggravated assault, battery and terroristic threatening. He now faces an attempted capital murder charge in connection with the stabbing.
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