Palestinian man accused of stabbing at Athens hotel

ATHENS, Texas (KLTV) – A Palestinian man has been arrested in connection with a stabbing that occurred at an Athens hotel that left one person in critical condition.

According to an arrest affidavit, the Dispatch placed a call for all police units to respond to a hotel in the 1800 block of East Tyler Street around 2:15 a.m. Thursday. Officers were told a stabbing had occurred and heavy screaming could be heard in the background of the 911 call, according to the affidavit.

Upon arrival, an officer found one man next to the other who appeared to be covered in blood after being stabbed, the document said. The injured man, Kristopher Hill, pointed to a hotel room door and kept repeating, “He’s in there,” the affidavit says.

Hill said he did not know who else might be in the room or what weapons. The affidavit states that the other man claimed he saw Hill stabbed in the doorway of the hotel room, so he grabbed him off the ground and dragged him some distance. The man said he grabbed a towel and began applying pressure to the stab wounds.

Officers attempted to make contact with the suspect inside the room, but received no response, according to the statement. A hotel manager provided a key and officers said they entered to find the suspect had barricaded himself in the bathroom. Officers said they heard the toilet being flushed repeatedly and tried to kick the door open, but the suspect held it closed for some time. When they entered, officers said they found Kerry Kenneth Barnett, III, 50, with his hand in the toilet trying to flush “unknown items.”

Barnett allegedly waved an unknown object at the officers’ legs, then was tased and pulled out of the bathroom. He continued to resist the officers as they tried to handcuff him, according to the affidavit.

After being taken into custody, Barnett was taken to an Athens hospital for evaluation. He was booked into the Henderson County Jail for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, tampering with physical evidence and resisting arrest. His bond has been set at a total of $82,500.

Hill was also taken to a nearby hospital and then flown to Tyler for further treatment. The affidavit says he was listed as critical as of 4:40 a.m. and was still undergoing surgery.