Arizona man fatally stabbed Elijah Al-Amin, 17, because he was playing rap music that made him feel 'unsafe'
An Arizona man who has been arrested for fatally stabbing and slitting the throat of a 17-year-old boy has told the police that he did so because he felt threatened by the teen's rap music.
Michael Paul Adams, 27, confessed to stabbing Elijah Al-Amin around 1:42 am last Thursday, July 4, after he heard him playing rap music in his vehicle in a Peoria Circle K parking lot, according to the police records obtained by AZ Central.
Surveillance footage captured the victim walking into the convenience store that night, with Adams walking in a few seconds later.
The 27-year-old then walked around the store a little bit before lunging at the teen with his pocketknife, stabbing him in the back and then slitting his throat.
The teen ran out of the store before collapsing underneath the gas canopy, where police personnel began administering CPR. He was then transported to a hospital, but his wounds proved too severe, and he was declared dead at 2:05 am.
Adams was arrested by officers on 67th Avenue near Circle K after he was found with blood on the body and clothes and reportedly confessed to stabbing Al-Amin.
When questioned, he told police that the rap music the 17-year-old had been playing outside the store made him feel 'unsafe.' He said he felt threatened by the music and not the teen, and that he felt he needed to be 'proactive rather than reactive.'
He claimed this was because he had been previously 'attacked by people who listen to rap music', who he identified as black, Latino, and Native American. He said people who listened to rap music were a threat to him and the community.
Adams had been released from the Arizona State Prison Complex in Yuma just two days before he attacked and killed Al-Amin and has a criminal history that includes theft, shoplifting, marijuana violation, disorderly conduct, assault with a weapon, and aggravated assault of a correctional employee.
Jacie Cotterell, Adams' lawyer, pinned the blame on his mental state and said her client, who needed to see a mental health counselor, did not have access to mental health services after he was released from prison.
But Bill Lamoreaux, a spokesman with the Arizona Department of Corrections, said Adams 'was not designated seriously mentally ill' and that the 27-year-old had been provided contacts for community services such as continuing care, housing, and welfare.
Adams has been arrested and charged with first-degree murder. He is being held at the Maricopa County Jail on a $1 million bond and is scheduled for a preliminary hearing in court on July 15.