Police: Ukiah man arrested after breaking into apartment with makeshift spear

A 50-year-old man was arrested in Ukiah early Monday after police said he broke into his neighbors’ apartment and tried to stab them with a knife attached to the end of a broomstick.

Andrew McDonnell Custer of Ukiah was booked into the Mendocino County Jail on suspicion of attempted murder, assault on a police officer and burglary.

An officer used a Taser on Custer during his arrest, which came after police were called to an apartment complex in the 100 block of Observatory Avenue in Ukiah shortly after 6 a.m.

A 911 caller had reported a man brandishing a knife and trying to break into an apartment through a window, the Ukiah Police Department said in a news release.

Police said before they arrived, Custer had forced his way into the apartment. He had a 4-foot-long broom stick with a 6.5-inch knife tied to the end of it, which he jabbed at the two people inside the apartment, police said.

“He actually cut one of the subjects’ jackets,“ said Lt. Andrew Phillips. ”That’s how close he came to stabbing them.“

Neither of the people were injured in the attack, according to Phillips.

When an officer got to the apartment complex, Custer was on a lawn outside.

"The officer recognized Custer from numerous prior law enforcement contacts and knew Custer had sever mental health disorders,“ the press release said.

According to police, Custer advanced toward the officer with his weapon, which he was “thrusting forward in a stabbing motion.”

The officer pointed his gun at Custer and told him to drop his weapon and stop advancing, but Custer ignored the orders, police said.

Custer got within 8 to 10 feet of the officer as he chased him in a circle around his patrol car, police said.

Two other officers arrived and one of them shocked Custer with a Taser, which was deployed a single time, according to Phillips. Custer then fell to the ground and the officers handcuffed him, police said.

Investigators said there was no apparent motive for the attack.

You can reach Staff Writer Matt Pera at matthew.pera@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @Matt__Pera.