By Ed Pruneau, Record Staff Writer
A Warren County man accused of stabbing another man in an argument is being held on multiple felony charges.Joshua Robert Johnson, 31, Wright City, is jailed on a $250,000 cash-only bond in the incident that occurred early Thursday, Aug. 25, on Pine Forest Drive, according to reports.Johnson is charged with first-degree assault, causing serious injury; armed criminal action; and tampering with physical evidence in a felony prosecution.The Warren County Sheriff’s Office arrested Johnson shortly after the 1:10 a.m. incident.A woman, Katelyn Peterson, 21, St. Ann, also is charged in the incident with tampering with physical evidence in a felony prosecution. Her bond was set at $5,000.Johnson is accused of stabbing Paul J. Heinz in his left side with a 10-inch fixed-blade knife that had a seratted edge.Authorities said Heinz was listed in critical condition at a St. Louis medical facility, according to a probable cause statement filed in court by Lt. Timothy A. Matthews.Both Johnson and Peterson are charged with disposing of the knife following the assault. Peterson, during an initial interview, told deputies that the knife was thrown out of the window of a car.Johnson told investigators that a passenger in his car threw the knife out along the North Interstate 70 Service Road near Stracks Church Road, according to the probable cause statement.A witness to the fight told deputies that the altercation ended as Johnson “punctured the victim’s ribs with a large knife,” the statement notes.Johnson stated he responded by stabbing Heinz after his arm was struck and face was “grazed” with an unknown object. He said the knife was in a holster strapped to his waist, according to the statement. First-degree assault is a Class A felony in Missouri with a sentencing range of 10 to 30 years or life in prison. Armed criminal action carries a mandatory sentence of three years in the Missouri Department of Corrections.Johnson was sentenced to 30 days in jail after his probation was revoked in a 2005 felony case in which he pleaded guilty to a felony charge of violating a state statute regarding crop loss, according to online court records.He also has several misdemeanor charges pending in court, including three counts of endangering the welfare of a child, possession of marijuana and unlawful use of drug paraphernalia, according to the records.Johnson is charged with first-degree assault, causing serious injury; armed criminal action; and tampering with physical evidence in a felony prosecution.
Katelyn Peterson, 21, St. Ann, is charged in the incident with tampering with physical evidence in a felony prosecution. Her bond was set at $5,000.
