- Attempted murder, a first-degree felony
- Felonious assault (serious physical harm), a second-degree felony
- Felonious assault (deadly weapon), a second-degree felony
- Grand theft of a motor vehicle, a fourth-degree felony
His attorney, Arica Underwood, entered a not guilty plea on his behalf in a Butler County courtroom Thursday.
Crabtree will be back in court Feb. 12.
He remains in Butler County jail on a $775,000 bond.
Middletown Police Detective Connor Kirby testified in Middletown Municipal Court in December that Crabtree said he was acting “because of God” when he allegedly stabbed the man.
“(Crabtree) gave different reasons as to why he wanted to kill (the) 25-year-old victim,” Kirby said. “One of the reasons he said, it was because of God.”
Crabtree’s alleged victim was in court the same day in December, having been released from the hospital with more than 30 stab wounds and a collapsed lung.
What happened?
At 3:50 a.m. Dec. 4, Middletown police and fire responded to a stabbing in the 4400 block of Bonita Drive.
During a police interview, Crabtree said the victim came to his house, knocked on the door and was let in. The victim, according to Crabtree, was sitting on the couch and not threatening Crabtree.
Crabtree said “(the victim) came, laid down, and I (expletive) was talking to him and I just attacked him. It’s just ‘cause I don’t want nothing to do with that dude.”
Crabtree then told the officer “(the victim) was on the couch, I grabbed his head and I stabbed him in the throat.”
Crabtree then used hand motions to demonstrate the stabbing, according to court records.
He told the officer his intention was to kill the victim, according to court records.
The alleged murder weapon is a silver, fixed-blade style knife, according to Kirby.
The victim was transported to Atrium Medical Center and later transferred to Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton.
Crabtree fled on foot, police said. While a police K9 was trying to track him, the man got into a locked Middletown police cruiser through the window and stole the vehicle, according to police.
Crabtree then drove the stolen cruiser from the area of South Breiel Boulevard and Oxford State Road in Middletown to Rusconi Drive in Independence, Kentucky, where he was stopped by Independence Police Department, according to court records.
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