51-year-old man from Roanoke is the suspect wanted for attacking local police officer in an incident last month, police

Documents from the Roanoke Circuit Court have named the man who was shot by a Roanoke police officer last month when he was holding a knife outside of an apartment complex.

In connection with what happened on January 25, Frank Joseph Distefano, 51, of Roanoke, has been charged with assaulting an officer. The event is described in an affidavit that is part of a search warrant.

The affidavit says that at about 7:30 a.m. that day, Roanoke Police officers “responded to a 911 call about a domestic disturbance on the grounds” of Lee-Hy Manor, a complex in the 3700 block of Stratford Park Drive Southwest.

The affidavit says that the first officer on the scene “encountered a white male subject,” who turned out to be Distefano, “in front of the community laundromat facility.”

There, “Distefano showed very strange behavior and repeatedly told the police officer that he was King of the Jews, King of Jerusalem, and King of Israel, and that he was guarding his wife, a female subject who had locked herself in the laundromat to get away from Distefano,” the affidavit says.

The affidavit says that Distefano kept acting “angry and out of control” and shouting that he would kill the police officer. The officer was told he was “fired” by Distefano.

Then, according to the affidavit, Distefano walked around the building and “armed himself with an unknown object in his right hand.” He went back to the front of the building, where he kept yelling at the officer while hiding the object in his right hand.

The affidavit says that the police officer “visually identified” the object as “a large kitchen knife” and immediately told Distefano to drop the knife in a loud voice.

Distefano did not follow the rules. Instead, he kept “yelling at the police officer.” Then, the affidavit says, Distefano turned the knife in his right hand so that the blade was facing outward, and he “aggressively moved toward the police officer from about 12 feet away.”

As Distefano quickly got closer to the police officer, he said, “I’m going to kill you!” while holding the large kitchen knife in his right hand.

The officer “fired his gun in the direction” of Distefano, and a bullet hit him. Distefano “stopped moving forward,” “retreated back to the sidewalk,” and “ran to the grassy lawn next to the building.”

There, Distefano did what the officer told him to do, which was to put down his gun and get down on the ground, the affidavit says. The officer “immediately secured” Distefano, gave him first aid, and called for EMS to come help.

Distefano was taken to Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital to be treated for his injuries. The officer who was shot was put on administrative leave, and the Virginia State Police were called to look into what happened.

The officer and Distefano’s conversation was caught on video and audio by the officer’s body camera, the affidavit says.

The search warrant that explained what happened asked Quest Diagnostics, the hospital’s on-site medical laboratory, for records about Distefano’s visit to the hospital. Investigators took these records into their possession.

A second search warrant signed in Roanoke Circuit Court the day of the shooting says that police have also taken Distefano’s cell phone and “all electronic data that can be retrieved” from it.

This affidavit says that the phone was found “on the ground where the suspect’s body was lying.” “The man in question sent threatening text messages to a woman who had talked to him on the first call.”

Roanoke Commonwealth’s Attorney Donald Caldwell said on Monday that on January 28, a warrant was issued for Distefano’s arrest on a charge of trying to hurt someone intentionally. Distefano was put in jail on January 31.

The next day, Distefano was charged with trying to hurt someone intentionally, and Caldwell said he was given a public defender.

Caldwell went on to say that on Feb. 6, a grand jury in Roanoke Circuit Court charged Distefano with felony assault and battery of a law enforcement officer. This is the only charge that the commonwealth plans to go after.

Distefano went to court on February 10. He was in a wheelchair and told Judge Christopher Clemens that he couldn’t walk without pain medicine.

Distefano gave up his right to a lawyer at that hearing. Caldwell said that at Distefano’s next hearing, which is set for March 6, the court will look at his choice of lawyer again.

Distefano is still being held without bond at the Roanoke City Jail.