A 49-year-old man was arrested Monday afternoon on suspicion of first-degree assault/domestic violence days after he hit his roommate in the face with a machete, according to police.
The man had become angry after his video game play was interrupted, Police Lt. Paul Lower said Tuesday.
About 1 a.m. July 19, police were dispatched to the 500 block of 10th Avenue Southeast, near the Olympia Post Office, after the 62-year-old victim had sought refuge at a neighboring apartment. Police found him with a severe injury to his face. He was immediately taken to Providence St. Peter Hospital in Olympia, then later was transported to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, Lower said.
Police were able to speak to the victim. The man said he had forgotten his key to the apartment, so knocked on the door repeatedly until his roommate answered the door.
By then, though, the suspect was angry and yelling at the victim because he had interrupted his video game. The suspect grabbed a machete and began cutting a couch in frustration, then hit his roommate in the face, according to police.
Police recovered the weapon with blood on it and also found a trail of blood leading from one apartment to the neighboring unit.
Olympia police, tipped off by the Thurston County Sheriff's Office, found the suspect in the 400 block of Carpenter Road Southeast about 3:30 p.m. Monday, July 24, where he was arrested.
