A Kansas pastor has been charged with five counts of attempted murder after he allegedly stabbed his family set fire to their house early Saturday morning.
The Shawnee Police Department said that Matthew Lee Richards, 41, was also charged with a single count of aggraated arson with risk of bodily harm, KSHB reported.
Police and firefighters responded to the home just before 4 a.m. and found the fire in the basement.
An adult woman and two juveniles were still hospitalized Saturday afternoon. A 19-year-old and two other juveniles were treated and released. All the victims — Richards’ wife and their five children — suffered lacerations, KMBC said.
Richards, a children’s pastor at Crossroads Christian Church and a teacher at Christ Preparatory Academy, was also taken to a hospital for treatment of unknown injuries, WDAF reported.
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He is being held on a $5 million bond and is due in court on Monday.
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[Featured image: Matthew Lee Richards/Johnson County Sheriff’s Office]
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