Court docs: Avondale man claimed self-defense after deadly stabbing at group home
AVONDALE, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) -- A Valley man who lives in a group home is facing a murder charge after allegedly using a kitchen knife to stab his roommate to death, claiming it was an act of self-defense after being attacked.
Court documents obtained by Arizona’s Family state that officers first responded to an unidentified group home in Avondale around 3 a.m. on Monday. When they arrived, they found the suspect, identified as 26-year-old Naijier Sulimon Wakefield, with blood dripping down his hand as officers believed he was pacing himself and trying to leave. At that point, court paperwork said, officers detained him while noticing more blood on several parts of his body.
Investigators eventually made their way into the home, where they discovered a large pool of blood trailing into the victim’s bed, papers say. That’s where they found the body of a victim who has not yet been identified.
Court records state that the house manager told investigators he was woken up by loud banging on the walls and began asking Wakefield what he was doing. Another neighbor told police that the house manager had yelled at Wakefield, saying, “dude what are you doing? Dude, you got to stop.” Wakefield reportedly threatened everyone inside saying that “no one better call the cops.”
While no one allegedly saw the stabbing, residents reported that he had been standing with a kitchen knife, walked away, and then left the bedroom wearing different clothing, according to court documents. Officers at the scene found a bloody knife in the kitchen and a broken blade in the victim’s bedroom, helping identify Wakefield as the suspect.
After he was arrested, Wakefield reportedly told detectives his roommate attacked him and that he was acting in self-defense. Court papers say he then asked for a lawyer. Witness statements from the group home also reported that Wakefield had been “overly paranoid and wanting to fight people from the house and made statements about being a ‘Blood’ gang member.”
Wakefield faces one count of first-degree murder and one count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
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