Police: Rapid City Stabbing Victim Had “Association” With Suspect

   Rapid City police say a suspect being sought in a fatal stabbing about 2 hours before dawn on Tuesday had an “association” with the victim.

Investigators say the death of 24-year old Leon Richards of Rapid City does not appear to be a random crime.

      Officers responding to a call about 4 AM Tuesday found Richards on the ground with multiple stab wounds. Paramedics treated Richards and took him to the hospital, where he later died

     The homicide is the latest in a growing number of serious and violent crimes in that area of Rapid City. 

      Police Captain James Johns says “there are a lot of bad players in this neighborhood, people that don’t respect each other, people that don’t respect their own lives.”

      Captain Johns says “we’ve done as much work as the police department can do, with overtime shifts, with holding people accountable with a zero-tolerance approach, if you’ve got warrants, if you’ve committed a crime, you go to jail.”

       Johns says they’re also “trying to empower the good people of the neighborhood to speak up and take it back and end this string of violence in the community because the police can’t be in the area 24/7.”