Cape Girardeau man arrested for allegedly assaulting roommate

Cape Girardeau police officers arrested a man Wednesday, Feb. 5, for allegedly assaulting his roommate.

Kenneth Franks, 62, of Cape Girardeau was arrested by police early Wednesday morning on charges of unlawful use of a weapon, armed criminal action and first-degree domestic assault.

According to a probable-cause statement, police responded to a domestic assault call Monday, Feb. 3, when they found the victim with a laceration on his hand, several swollen contusions on his head and a laceration on the left side of his skull.

The victim told police that Franks had struck him multiple times with a blunt object before Franks retreated to a bedroom and returned with a large knife.

The document states the victim managed to escape the residence to avoid further harm. When police questioned Franks, he admitted to cutting the victim and was taken into custody, according to the statement. Franks later refused to answer further questions, police said.

The probable states a search warrant was executed on Franks' bedroom, where officers found "a large hunting knife with a brown handle inside a black sheath, a large kitchen knife with a brown handle and a metal tool handle with a drill bit, which matched the description of the blunt object used in the assault.

Franks is being held in lieu of a $25,000 bond.