LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — A man accused of stabbing another man to death Wednesday allegedly stole a kitchen knife from Target minutes before, documents said.
Janelle Hammell, 23, of Las Vegas, faces an open murder charge, records showed.
On April 5 around 9 a.m., officers were dispatched to a report of a stabbing near East Katie Avenue and South Maryland Parkway. Police found a man with apparent stab wounds and he was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.
A witness told police that while sitting in his car, he noticed a man walk in front of it, looking around as if he was searching for someone. The man, later identified as Hammell, then started to run at the victim who was walking eastbound on Katie Avenue with his back to the suspect, according to police.
Hammell then stabbed the victim in the neck twice before running away, the report said.
Police found open packaging for a “Henckles” kitchen knife and the knife itself near the victim’s body, police said.
Police reviewed surveillance footage at a nearby Target which showed a man matching Hammell’s description, walking into the store, grabbing something from the cookware section, and walking out without paying, according to police.
Hammell was detained at the Shannon West Homeless Youth Center. Surveillance footage from the youth center showed Hammell running from East Katie Avenue and entering a room around 9:13 a.m. Just a minute later, he was seen leaving the room wearing a different outfit, police said.
Hammell told police that he had been homeless for a while and was living at the youth center trying to get his high school diploma.
When asked why he stabbed the victim Hammell told police that he was “mad at the world.” He said that his life had been threatened in the past and that he had to have the “kill or be killed” mentality, the report said.
When asked if he had remorse for what he did, he said “No.”
Hammell was taken to the Clark County Detention Center and is scheduled to appear in court on April 11.
