ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — A man charged in connection with a deadly shooting and fire in St. Louis County stabbed a police dog in Las Vegas after threatening officers and lighting a fire in a hotel, officers said.
Las Vegas police and SWAT officers took Thurman Lowe into custody Friday after Lowe threatened to harm himself and officers, lit a fire in the hotel where he was staying and stabbed a police dog, according to the arrest report from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.
St. Louis County prosecutors charged Thurman Lowe in January with first-degree murder, armed criminal action, unlawful possession of a firearm, second-degree arson and tampering with physical evidence in a felony prosecution connected to the deadly shooting of 46-year-old Freddie Tribbitt and the burning of Tribbitt's home.
According to the arrest report, Lowe called the police and told them he was harming himself and said he would do it again if police responded. Officers determined that Lowe was wanted for murder out of St. Louis County and were able to determine where the call was coming from. When officers arrived, they tried to get him to come out of the hotel, but he refused. A short time later, officers saw smoke coming from Lowe's room and called the fire department.
When Lowe eventually came out of the room, he yelled that he was "coming to get" the officers. Officers tried to use a beanbag gun to subdue him, but he continued to come after officers with a knife. A police K9 named Enzo was deployed in an attempt to arrest Lowe, but he stabbed the dog eight or nine times before SWAT officers were able to knock Lowe to the ground with a shield and take him into custody.
Lowe was taken to the hospital and taken into surgery for treatment of his wounds. Enzo was taken to an animal hospital with critical injuries.
An update posted to the police department's Facebook page said Enzo is out of the hospital and recovering.
Lowe is facing new charges in Las Vegas. He was charged with first-degree arson, assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer, attempting to kill a police animal and resisting arrest with a weapon.
His bond in St. Louis County was set at $3 million. It is unclear if he will be extradited to St. Louis County since he was also charged in Las Vegas.
