Missoula Man Fights Off Knife Attacker With a Wooden Board

Missoula, MT (KGVO-AM News) - On June 27, 2026, at approximately 7:00 p.m., Missoula County 911 received a call reporting a male-versus-male disturbance that was occurring at Mountain Home Supply. The caller reported that one male had a knife and the other had a wood 2X4. The male with the knife was observed leaving the parking lot. 

Multiple Missoula Police Department officers were dispatched to the scene. One officer arrived and discovered a male, John Doe, standing next to a silver Dodge Dakota with a camper topper. Doe showed the officer his right thumb, which was actively bleeding from a horizontal laceration. Doe reported the other male, who was later identified as Eric Wright, had attacked him while he was lying in his camper. Doe did not know the male or recognize him.  

The male approached Doe and was swinging a sword at him. Doe defended himself by grabbing what he could inside of his camper and located a 2X4 that was within reach. The officer observed a 2X4 lying on the asphalt next to the rear driver's side of the truck, which Doe confirmed was what he used to defend himself. The officer further observed that the 2X4 appeared to have a small red stain on the edge, which appeared to be blood.  

Doe reported, “Oh, he was swinging at me the whole way. That's why I grabbed my board as fast as I could. Thank God I had it in there. Hit him right in the dang nose, you know, just best self-defense I could use, right. It knocked him down on his butt out here. It could gimme a chance to get back out.” A medical team arrived and cleaned and bandaged Doe’s laceration. 

Another officer spoke with the 911 caller who explained that she was biking nearby when she heard Doe screaming to call 911. She slowed down and looked over, and a male (Wright) was down on one knee and had a “knife blade touching the ground.” She described the knife to be “pretty sizeable” and demonstrated with her hands which looked to be about 12 inches in length. She said, “Doe had nothing in his hands and was really alarmed and asked me to call 911.” She circled back on her bike, called 911, and watched the male with the knife “just started walking away.” 

A short time later, an officer located Wright inside the Blue Heron apartments. Wright is unaware of who the male he got into a fight with was, but stated that the male (Doe) frequents the area and causes excessive noise. On the night of the incident, Wright said Doe was again making excessive noise, so he went to confront him and ask him to stop.  

READ MORE: Missoula News - Crime Reports

A detective was able to review security camera footage from the Mountain Home Supply parking lot which captured the incident. The security camera footage depicts Wright walking up to the back of Doe’s camper truck, and he begins talking to someone inside. After a short discussion, Wright pulls out what is believed to be a knife and begins swinging it into the truck. Doe then grabs a board and starts swinging it in self-defense. Wright continues to swing the knife at Doe as he is trying to get out of the camper truck. As Doe gets out of the truck, he hits Wright with the board, and Wright falls to the ground. Doe then begins yelling for someone to call law enforcement. 

Wright was subsequently arrested and booked into the Missoula County Detention Facility. He is currently being charged with felony assault with a weapon. His bond was set at $25,000. 

The information in this article was obtained from sources that are publicly viewable.