2 hunters stabbed by man in Erie County farm field

12/1/2007

HURON, Ohio - Two men were stabbed yesterday while deer hunting by a man who walked through the farm field where they had their blind, authorities said.

Chad Rothgeb, 22, of Norwalk, Ohio, was stabbed multiple times in the back. He was listed in serious condition last night in St. Vincent Mercy Medical Center.

Mitchell Bellamy, 28, of Berlin Heights, Ohio, was stabbed in the head. He was treated at Community Health Partners Regional Medical Center, Lorain, Ohio.

Mr. Rothgeb and Mr. Bellamy were in the blind in a field near State Rt. 2 in Erie County's Berlin Township about 8:50 a.m. when the man walked the field in front of them.

They asked him why he was there, but "that conversation apparently degraded into a physical altercation," said Capt. Paul Sigsworth of the county sheriff's office.

As one of the hunters and the man struggled over a shotgun, the muzzle went into the ground, the gun discharged, and the barrel exploded.

After the man stabbed the hunters, he took the damaged shotgun. It was found by nearby railroad tracks. The suspect was arrested in a wooded area several hundred yards away, Captain Sigsworth said.

Tyrone Cash, 22, of Lorain was charged with two counts of attempted murder; two counts of felonious assault; two counts of aggravated robbery; two counts of tampering with evidence; theft of a firearm, and attempted theft of a firearm.

He was being held in the county jail without bond. He will be arraigned Monday in Erie County Court in Milan, Ohio.