Henry County stabbing leaves one man dead

HENRY COUNTY, Va. (WDBJ) - A Martinsville man has been charged with first-degree murder after a stabbing at Scrub Board Laundromat Sunday.

Kenneth Austin Tatum, 30, is being held at the Henry County Adult Detention Center without bond.

The Martinsville-Henry County 911 Communication Center received reports of a man suffering from a stab wound at 1:13 a.m.

Henry County Sheriff’s Deputies arrived to find a man lying on the floor with an apparent stab wound to his neck. After crews attempted life saving measures, the man died at the scene.

The victim was identified as William Clay Rumley, 47, of Martinsville.

According to deputies, an initial investigation determined that Tatum entered the laundromat and began to have a conversation with a woman who was already inside. The two did not know each other.

Tatum tried to convince the woman to give her phone to him when Rumley got between Tatum and the woman. Tatum and Rumley then got into an argument before Tatum stabbed him in the neck. Tatum ran off and was also injured, bleeding heavily from the incident, according to investigators.

Deputies responded to a separate call involving a domestic altercation on Fairy Street, where Tatum was located. The responding officers recognized him as the suspect from the homicide at the laundromat and took him into custody without incident.

Deputies say the investigation remains ongoing.

Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to contact the Henry County Sheriff’s Office at 276-638-8751 or Crimestoppers at 63-CRIME (632-7463). The Crimestoppers Program offers rewards up to $2500.00 for information related to crime. The nature of the crime and the substance of the information determine the amount of reward paid.