MESA, AZ — A 30-year-old man is accused of stabbing a woman 19 times and robbing her after a crash in Mesa in February.
Joseph Sellers and the woman, who prosecutors say did not know each other, were involved in a crash along Broadway Road west of Greenfield Road around 9:30 p.m. on February 20. Police say the woman pulled her car into a nearby parking lot to exchange information.
Prosecutors say Sellers then approached the woman while she was in her vehicle and assaulted her.
"Mr. Sellers then approached the victim while she was seated in her vehicle and began to brutally attack and stab her," a representative from the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office told a judge. "The state believes this was a brutal attack for no reason. Mr. Sellers and the victim did not know each other."
The woman reportedly suffered a collapsed lung and a broken tooth, among other injuries.
"The victim sustained 19 stab wounds. She had a collapsed lung, she lost a tooth, and she was severely disfigured," the prosecutor said.
Sellers is also accused of stealing the woman's phone before fleeing the scene.
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Police say detectives identified Sellers as the suspect and later arrested him in Las Vegas, Nevada. During a court appearance, the state requested a $1 million cash-only bond.
"Mr. Sellers has out-of-state prior felony convictions, and the state believes he is an extreme danger to both the victim and the community, and based upon his actions, fleeing the state after committing this act, that he is also a flight risk," the prosecutor said.
Sellers denied the allegations in court.
"I believe my bonds should be lowered because I didn't stab anybody," Sellers said.
The judge set Sellers' bond at $750,000 cash.
"I also find it disturbing that despite all evidence to the contrary, the defendant continues to state both in the form four and in person that he did not stab the victim again, despite all evidence to the contrary," the judge said.
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