Man says it was a stranger who stabbed him on Monday outside Bing Crosby Theater

A man was walking in downtown Spokane Monday afternoon when a stranger approached him and stabbed him before running away, according to court documents..

Tayler Hames-Clayton told police he was walking near the Bing Crosby Theater in the West 900 block of Sprague Avenue at about 2:30 p.m. when a man walked up and stabbed him. He described the man as having brown hair and wearing a plaid shirt.

Hames-Clayton was taken to Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center, where he was treated for a stab wound that lacerated his liver.

Police arrived on scene shortly after the incident and began searching for the suspect. Surveillance video from a nearby business showed a man carrying a black satchel wearing multiple shirts, including a plaid button-up.

Gabriel Wood, owner of Heritage, said he was told there was blood in the bathroom of his bar at 122 S. Monroe St. When he went to investigate, he found blood on the sink area and a bloody shirt in the bathroom garbage can, according to court documents.

A look on the bar’s surveillance video showed a man entering the bathroom of the bar at about 3 p.m. and then leaving.

A short time later, Officer Richie Plunkett spotted a man matching the suspect’s description at Madison Street near Second Avenue. The man had a lock-blade knife with an orange handle visible, according to court documents.

Plunkett detained Patrick Paige, 37, who had blood on his hands and sweatshirt, according to court documents. Paige also was bleeding from a recent cut on his neck.

After being advised of his Miranda Rights, Paige declined to speak to officers. Paige was then booked into Spokane County Jail on suspicion of first-degree assault.

He has an extensive criminal record, including 12 felonies and 14 misdemeanor convictions, according to police.