Witnesses: Bootheel man fought off knife-wielding attacker

STEELE, Mo. -- The Pemiscot County prosecutor's office is reviewing a case from over the weekend that resulted in a would-be attacker being airlifted to the Elvis Presley Trauma Center at Memphis, Tenn.

Steele police chief Billy Joe Stanfield said that at 9:22 p.m. Saturday, officers responded to a report of a severely injured man.

Upon arrival, officers found an unresponsive 23-year-old Steele man suffering from injuries to his face and head. Emergency medical services were called to the scene and determined the man needed to be flown to Memphis.

About 9:35 p.m., officers began interviewing witnesses. Witnesses told officers the injured man had approached a second subject with a knife and threatened to stab him. The second subject, a 25-year-old Steele man, grabbed the knife and punched his would-be attacker numerous times in the face.

Officers later found the second subject, who admitted to striking the alleged knife-wielding attacker, claiming the man had threatened him at knifepoint and that he was only defending himself.

The 23-year-old was later listed in noncritical condition.