COLUMBIA — A Columbia man was arrested Thursday on suspicion of first-degree domestic assault and armed criminal action after a woman was slashed in the throat with a heavy box cutter, according to a police report.
Police said Kenneth Stapleton Jr., 53, had a heated argument with the victim, a 46-year-old woman, on the 200 block of Sanford Avenue around 6 p.m. Stapleton then “obtained a cutting instrument and slashed at the victim,” according to the report, and the woman suffered a deep cut on her throat. She was later transported to a hospital, where she is in stable condition after having undergone surgery.
Stapleton had been living with the victim, said police Capt. Steve Monticelli.
According to the report, Stapleton fled the scene after the fight. Officers followed footprints back to a residence where Stapleton had acquaintances, Monticelli said. Stapleton was not present at the residence, but officers were able to link Stapleton to another residence at 408 Sanford Ave., police said
The officers arrested Stapleton at the Sanford Avenue residence after they found him hiding in the back of the house beneath a mattress, according to the report.
Stapleton is being held at the Boone County Jail on $125,000 bond.