TACOMA, Wash. — A man is now facing homicide charges after one of his housemates, whom he allegedly stabbed back in January, died from his injuries.
On Jan. 20, police and fire crews were called to a home on South 34th Street in Tacoma after multiple people called 911 to report that they or a roommate had been stabbed, and that the building was on fire.
When crews arrived, they saw flames coming from the living room.
Other housemates began running out of the home, and at one point, there was an “explosion of flames,” court documents detailed. One person was “actively on fire” when they ran outside, and others were burned, court docs said.
Those who were stabbed and escaped the fire told police that one of their housemates, 29-year-old Andrew Keen, had begun stabbing several of them around 4 a.m., court documents allege.
According to court documents, Keen’s mental health had been declining in the three days that he had been at the clean and sober home.
Hours before the stabbings, Keen allegedly accused his roommate of stealing “something intangible” from him. Housemates who tried to calm him down learned that Keen was allegedly upset that his roommate had stolen his thoughts and emotions from him, court documents said.
Court documents said that the housemates were able to talk Keen down from the fight with his roommate. But hours later, that same housemate was woken up at 4 a.m. to the sound of someone screaming that they had been stabbed and that the house was on fire, docs said.
Tacoma Fire Department’s preliminary report confirms that multiple small fires were intentionally set inside the home.
According to court documents, Keen’s father, who was living in a different state, got a message from his son just before the stabbings that he was “going to jail tonight because he was going to kill some people.”
All three stabbing victims were taken to the hospital.
On March 17, one of the victims died as a result of his injuries.
It is not clear if that victim was the same housemate whom Keen originally took issue with.
Keen has been in custody since Jan. 20 and was charged with four counts of second-degree attempted murder and one count of first-degree arson.
While three people were reported stabbed, court documents say Keen allegedly threatened and ran toward another person with a knife, which is the fourth attempted murder charge.
Tacoma police say one of those charges will be amended to a homicide.
KIRO 7 has reached out to the Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office for additional information on the amended charges.