Parents Critically Injured in Champlin Stabbing, Son Charged
A Champlin man is accused of stabbing his parents during what he allegedly described as a “drug-induced rage,” leaving both victims critically injured.
According to a criminal complaint filed Monday, 39-year-old Travis William Lester faces two counts of attempted second-degree murder with intent but not premeditation after the attack on Sept. 5.
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Officers were called just after 6 p.m. to the 7100 block of 120th Avenue North on a report of a possible domestic assault. Dispatchers reported fumbling on the phone line and someone yelling “no!” before the call disconnected. A neighbor also called 911 to report seeing a woman covered in blood, the documents said.
When police arrived, they found Lester’s father lying on a deck behind the home and with severe injuries. He told officers his son had stabbed him and that his wife had also been hurt. First responders noted multiple stab wounds to his neck, chest, wrist and abdomen, rushing him into emergency care.
A short time later, officers located Lester’s mother in a nearby home and with life-threatening injuries including wounds to her neck, chest, breast, abdomen, wrist, forearm and flank. Both victims were taken to the hospital in critical condition and remain intubated as of Sept. 8, with additional surgery scheduled.
Inside the home, officers found blood throughout several rooms and a bloody knife hidden under a kitchen table. Investigators learned that Lester may have fled in a silver Buick Lucerne, which was later spotted in Brooklyn Park by an automated license plate reader. Around 9:15 p.m., officers in Lino Lakes stopped the vehicle and saw a butcher-style knife on the front seat, along with a jar containing a crystalline substance resembling methamphetamine, the documents reveal.
In a post-Miranda statement, Lester admitted to stabbing his parents, telling officers he had been thinking about doing it for “a day or two” but had not wanted to follow through.
Lester was set to make his initial court appearance Tuesday afternoon. He remains jailed in lieu of $1 million bail with conditions including no contact with his parents, their residence, witnesses or the hospital where they are being treated. The order also prohibits him from possessing weapons, using drugs or alcohol and requires random testing. If convicted, Lester faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison on each count.
