Newport Man Charged for Stabbing and Beating at Festival Field Apartments

NEWPORT, RI—One man is facing charges and another is being treated at Rhode Island Hospital after a stabbing and beating at the Festival Field Apartment Complex on Friday.

Police said Timothy J. Lockhart, 32, of 90 Girard Ave., Newport, was arrested Saturday for allegedly stabbing the 41-year-old victim between four and seven times before beating him with a metal pipe.

Police were dispatched to the housing complex at around 6:15 p.m. and the first arriving officer reportedly saw two men beating the victim. Both suspects and the victim fled the scene when they saw police, according to a police report.

The victim, identified by police as 41-year-old William Mitchell, was found inside an apartment and was bleeding profusely from multiple stab wounds. He reportedly refused to identify his attackers and was belligerent towards officers.

Mitchell was escorted to the rescue wagon that had been dispatched along with police and while he was being led away, he reportedly hurled racial epithets towards some of the people in the area who had gathered to watch the police activity.

Later, police said the victim’s girlfriend told police that the stabbing and beating occurred after an altercation inside her apartment during which Mitchell allegedly grabbed her and pushed her to the ground.

During that fight, the girlfriend reportedly yelled for help. That was when Lockhart and another unidentified person came to the door. All three then ended up outside and that’s when police say Mitchell was stabbed and beaten.

Mitchell suffered a collapsed lung and multiple stab wounds on his chest and back, police said.

Detectives recovered both the knife and the metal pipe from the crime scene.

Both Lockhart and Mitchell reside in apartments at the Festival Field complex, police said.

Police identified Lockhart as their suspect after an investigation and he was taken into custody the next day without incident. He is facing a charge of felony assault with a dangerous weapon and was ordered held without bail at the Adult Correctional Institutions in Cranston as a violator.

Bail on the new charge was set at $5,000 with surety and he is due to appear in court on Jan. 5 for a status conference.