Elderly Anadarko man accused of stabbing attempt

ANADARKO — An arrest warrant was issued for a 76-year-old Caddo County man accused of trying to stab another man with a steak knife during an odd incident.

The Caddo County District Court issued a felony arrest warrant Tuesday for Fred Lee Russell Jr., of Anadarko, for a felony count of assault, battery, or assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, records indicate. The crime is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

Anadarko police were called shortly before noon on July 7 to 602 E. Kansas and arrived to find Russell lying on the ground and another man standing.

The standing man told police he’d come to the home he’s rented and lived in for several years and found that Russell had locked the doors, the probable cause affidavit states. He said he climbed inside through the bedroom window.

Russell came into the bedroom, the man said, and tried to stab him with a kitchen knife, the affidavit states. He told Officer Ariel Kovach they wrestled as he tried to get the knife away from Russell, eventually punching him three times before getting him on the ground and throwing the knife onto the bed. The man then tied Russell’s hands with a shoe string and dragged him out of the house and through the back door where he left him to call 911, Kovach stated.

Police found the bedroom in disarray and a white-handled steak knife on the bed.

Russell was taken to Anadarko Physicians Hospital for evaluation, according to the affidavit. He told the staff a man he didn’t recognize came in through the bedroom window and was trying to kill him, so he grabbed a kitchen knife.

Kovach stated Russell had cuts on his right hand and left shin, but he’d suffered no serious injuries.

Russell was not in custody as of Thursday afternoon.