CLEARLAKE >> A woman was jailed and a man hospitalized after an incident Wednesday in Clearlake involving cigarettes, a knife and a baseball bat.
Clearlake Police officers arrested Sara Thomas, 28, for attempted murder and other possible charges. The victim, 46 year old Andrew Beckerley, survived multiple stab wounds and is reportedly in stable condition.
According to CPD Sgt. Tim Hobbs, the incident began when Thomas asked Beckerley for a cigarette and was either refused or told there were none in the residence. The two occupy homes in the 3700 block of Huntington Ave. — Beckerley in the main residence, Thomas in a smaller unit at the rear of the property.
Soon after this encounter, at approximately 7:30 a.m., police say a fight broke out. When they responded moments later to a 911 report of a person hit with a baseball bat, they found Beckerley in the road bleeding from several wounds, including one to the chest.
Officers reported that Thomas was sitting in Beckerley’s pickup truck, still in the driveway.
Investigators believe that, after being denied a cigarette, Thomas broke into Beckerley’s home armed with a knife and the bat. She allegedly stabbed the victim repeatedly, but during the struggle Beckerley wrested control of the bat and hit his attacker.
Hobbs reported that at some point in the struggle, Thomas took Beckerley’s keys. After she suffered several blows from the bat, investigators say she left, entered Beckerley’s pickup and attempted to start it.
Despite his wounds, the victim reached the street and waited for officers to arrive.
Medical personnel from the Lake County Fire Protection District treated Beckerley then transported him to Austin Park, where he was then flown by a REACH helicopter to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital.
Thomas was arrested and faces charges of attempted murder, burglary, armed robbery and vehicle theft. After being medically cleared for incarceration at St Helena Hospital in Clearlake, she was booked into the Lake County Jail.
Anyone with information regarding this case is asked to contact Detective Elvis Cook at 707-994-8251 ext 315.
