AUSTIN, Texas – A stabbing incident at an Austin coffee shop began over the suspect attempting to bring in alcoholic drinks, according to court paperwork.
20-year-old Shankar Temple Grace is charged with two counts of second-degree felony aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in connection with the Oct. 28 incident.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Man in Halloween costume stabs 2 people at coffee shop: APD
Shankar Temple Grace (Austin Police Department)
What happened at Buzz Mill Coffee on Oct. 28?
The backstory:
An arrest affidavit for Grace outlines what happened on Oct. 28.
Just before 9 p.m., Austin police officers were dispatched to a report of two people being stabbed at Buzz Mill Coffee on Town Creek Drive. Numerous 911 callers reported a fight between three people and one had a knife.
When officers arrived, they found two stabbing victims who were “seriously bleeding.” One had been stabbed in the neck and ribcage, while the other was stabbed in the abdomen and groin area. Both were taken by ATCEMS to local hospitals.
Several witnesses described the suspect as a white male in his mid 20s to 30s wearing a tattered-looking shirt with blood or makeup on his face and his hair shaved in a possible mohawk-style haircut. The suspect also left the scene going north towards S. Lakeshore Drive in a white single-cab truck with a white shell on the bed.
Witness statements, camera footage
A customer told police that the suspect had entered the bar area from the patio while carrying a case of Twisted Tea, an alcoholic beverage.
One of the victims told the suspect he could not bring alcohol inside and then told another employee to call the police as the suspect pulled a knife on him. The suspect then walked towards the patio exit and the man told him he couldn’t leave and had to wait for police.
The first victim followed the suspect through the double doors, and then an altercation broke out. The second victim then attempted to intervene, and the suspect ran east through the patio.
A second witness said that the suspect was sitting at a table with two other people waiting for a comedy show to begin. The suspect then left the patio area, and returned with the case of Twisted Tea, before sitting back down near the stage. The suspect then went inside, and when he came back, the witness saw the scuffle between the first victim and the suspect.
The witness described the suspect making a “downward stabbing motion as opposed to a punching motion” and told police he saw the suspect carrying a knife with a five-to-six-inch-long blade as he fled the scene.
The surveillance footage showed the fight and that the suspect was wearing a shirt that appeared dirty and tattered with the number “666” handwritten on the lower part of the shirt.
Suspect crashes into Robotaxi, arrested
Police also received a call during this about a crash at the intersection of Tillery Street and Govalle Ave, about three miles from Buzz Mill Coffee.
The call text advised police that a small white truck had been driving at a high rate of speed when it crashed into a self-driving Robotaxi. Officers arrived on scene and found the truck, identified as a white 2019 Nissan Frontier, and noted that it had a white shell over the bed and matched the description of the stabbing suspect’s truck.
Police also found the Nissan’s driver near the Millennium Youth Center near Rosewood Avenue and Walnut Avenue. Police detained the man and noted he was wearing the same clothes as the suspect seen on video at Buzz Mill. He was also in possession of a folding knife with a 6″ blade.
The suspect was identified by police as Shankar Grace.
While he was being taken from the hospital to the Travis County Jail, Grace allegedly told police that the two victims had fought him first and he was just defending himself. He also reportedly stated “It was just a fight, and I just happen to have a knife.”
Grace is still in the Travis County Jail as of Friday night with a collective $100,000 bond.
GoFundMe campaign for victims
Brian Mason, left, and Patric Tester, right
Dig deeper:
There are two GoFundMe campaigns for the two men who were injured in the incident, Brian Mason and Patric Tester.
According to the campaign for Mason, he had been working security when he stepped in to help. Mason has had to have a blood transfusion and emergency surgery to repair a wound in his neck.
The campaign says Mason is currently in the trauma ICU, but is now stable and beginning recovery.
“Anyone who knows Brian knows the kind of person he is. He is kindhearted, level-headed, and someone who brings a calm and reassuring presence to those around him. He stepped in to help others when they needed it, and now it’s our turn to be there for him,” says the campaign.
The campaign for Mason has raised about $24,000 of its $40,000 goal, and all donations will go directly towards his medical expenses and other recovery-related needs.
Tester’s campaign says that he was stabbed while trying to pull the assailant off his friend and coworker.
Tester’s injuries weren’t life-threatening, and he is in stable condition and receiving medical care, according to the campaign.
The campaign for Tester has raised just under $24,000 of its $26,000 goal, and all donations will go directly towards his medical expenses and other recovery-related needs.
The Source: Information in this report comes from an arrest affidavit, Travis County court records, a GoFundMe campaign for the two injured men and previous reporting by FOX 7 Austin.
