TULSA, Okla. — Tulsa police identified a man Thursday who they say stabbed a school employee and prompted a bomb threat at a grocery store on Wednesday.
Police say Daniel Edwards used a sword to stab the employee and threw Molotov cocktails against the side of Holy Family Cathedral Church.
Tulsa police officers responded to the church after they got a call about a man trying to get inside. They say that man threw a flaming object at the church and stabbed a church school employee.
“My worst nightmare," Father Gary Kastl with Holy Family Cathedral said.
Kastl said Wednesday he was still trying to process what happened outside the church that afternoon.
“Innocence was lost as someone from the outside came and attacked the peaceful campus here at the cathedral," Kastl said.
Kastl says some students from the Holy Family Cathedral school gathered on the front steps of the cathedral around 4:00 p.m. to take fall photos. That's when he said a man carrying a cooler walked across the street.
“As soon as the man approached the cathedral, our faculty and staff reacted really quickly and moved our children inside the school building, and we immediately went on lockdown and followed all of our protocols and procedures that we follow," Kastl said.
He said the man tried to get into the cathedral, but the doors were locked.
“So he made his way down between the cathedral and the school behind me and proceeded to open his ice chest and it appears he was lighting some sort of firebomb that he intended to light inside the cathedral but was not able to and so he was doing so on the south side of the Cathedral," Father Kastl said.
Kastl said the front desk attendant walked outside to figure out what he was doing.
“At that time, unfortunately, the guy pulled a sword from his side and attacked our front desk attendant and very seriously wounded him on both of his hands," Kastl said.
Kastl said the attendant was taken to the hospital and last he heard he was going into surgery to repair his hand. Police say they're expected to make a full recovery.
A few minutes later, police say they got a second call about a man making a threat at Reasor's on 71st and Sheridan. That suspect matched the description of the man at Holy Family Cathedral.
Officers arrived and tased Edwards after they say they gave him several commands near the registers inside the store. They arrested him and say they found the sword inside his car.
Edwards is being held in the Tulsa County Jail on Thursday and will likely face charges including Assault with a Deadly Weapon.
U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson announced Thursday that Edwards is charged in federal court with unlawful possession of an unregistered incendiary bomb.
As for the church's school, staff sent a letter saying that classes have been canceled for the next two days, to give families time to process what happened. They will also make priests, deacons, and counselors available.
The Diocese of Tulsa and Eastern Oklahoma sent out the following statement after the incident:
To the People in the Diocese of Tulsa and Eastern Oklahoma,
Holy Family Cathedral School is committed to the safety and well-being of your children. Yesterday, our parish and school community was targeted by an individual who intended to spread fear and harm.
At approximately 4:00 pm, a man carrying an ice chest approached the front of the Cathedral and attempted to enter. Finding the doors locked, he proceeded down the alley between the school and the Cathedral.
During this time, students were on the front steps of the Cathedral taking school pictures. We express our gratitude and appreciation for the faculty and staff who reacted quickly and immediately moved the students inside the school. The whole school was immediately placed on lockdown and remained so until cleared by local law enforcement.
It appears that the individual lit an object on fire and threw it into the side of the Cathedral causing damage to some south-facing windows.
We also want to express our sincere admiration for our front desk attendant, Rod Notzon, who confronted the individual and suffered lacerations on his hands after the individual attacked him with what appeared to be a sword. Rod has been treated at St. John Hospital, is in stable condition, and currently recovering. The individual never approached nor made his way into the school. At approximately 5:30 pm, the person in question was arrested.
These situations are unsettling and invite us to healing and reflection. On Friday, we will offer a Mass for Rod's healing at 9 am followed by a Eucharistic Procession around the property's parameter. In addition, priests, deacons, and counselors will be available after Mass until 11:30 am. We invite the community to come, pray, and heal with us.
I am extremely grateful to our faculty, staff, parish and school administrators for their fast and prudent action to keep everyone safe. I also want to extend my gratitude to the quick response and leadership of our local law enforcement.
May we commend Rod and our school to the Divine Mercy of Jesus Christ.
Very Rev. Gary D. Kastl
Diocese of Tulsa and Eastern Oklahoma
Vicar General
Holy Family Cathedral and Classical School
Rector
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