A warrant is out for a 46-year-old Lathrop man accused of cutting a victim with a pocket knife and striking them with a baseball bat during a confrontation in Caldwell County last Friday. Jamal J. Ghazai now faces five felony charges, including two counts of first-degree assault, two counts of armed criminal action, and one count of unlawful use of a weapon.
According to Northwest MO Info, deputies were dispatched to a reported stabbing in Caldwell County last Friday, per the probable cause statement. The victim and a witness identified the suspect as Ghazai and said he fled the scene after the altercation.
A Dispute Over Ghazai Leaving the Property
Per the victim's account relayed in the report, Ghazai had been staying at the victim's property, and other tenants reportedly agreed he was a problem who needed to leave. The victim told investigators the confrontation stemmed from an altercation over Ghazai leaving.
The victim said Ghazai cut their left forearm with a black pocket knife during the altercation, and also claimed to have gone to confront Ghazai at a rundown trailer where he sometimes slept. Ghazai allegedly struck the victim's head with a baseball bat during the encounter, the report states. The victim was taken by private vehicle to a hospital for treatment, and a pocket knife was later located at the scene.
Bond Denied, Prior Arrests on Record
Bond is to be denied upon Ghazai's arrest, the report notes. His record includes a 2007 arrest in Nebraska for felony strangulation and a 2013 conviction there for a protection order violation. He was also charged with resisting arrest in Clinton County in 2022, though the state later dismissed that charge.
More recently, Ghazai was arrested for a protection order violation in Caldwell County in 2025 and was charged there with resisting arrest the same year. A Caldwell County inmate roster lists an entry for Jamal Ghazai under booking number 2025-00811, with an age of 45 at the time and a booking date of September 4, 2025, according to the Caldwell County MO Sheriff's Department. It is not established from that record whether Ghazai is currently in custody or how that earlier matter was resolved.
What the Charges Could Mean
Two of the five felony counts against Ghazai are for armed criminal action. Under Missouri law, a person who commits a felony by, with, or through the use, assistance, or aid of a dangerous instrument or deadly weapon is also guilty of armed criminal action, according to the Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Ghazai is also charged with unlawful use of a weapon, a separate statute titled by the state as covering the offense's exceptions, violations, and penalties.
The case remains open as authorities continue searching for Ghazai.
