Rand Paul staffer stabbed in ‘random, violent attack’ in D.C.

An aide to Sen. Rand Paul was stabbed Saturday in Washington, D.C., and underwent surgery for life-threatening injuries, police said.

Phil Todd, 26, was walking down H Street in northeast D.C. when he was attacked, local NBC affiliate WRC reported.

Police arrested Glynn Neal, 42, hours after the attack, according to a statement from D.C. police. Neal was charged with assault with intent to kill.

“This past weekend a member of my staff was brutally attacked in broad daylight in Washington, D.C.,” Paul (R-Ky.) told the Washington Post. “We are relieved to hear the suspect has been arrested.”

Police said Todd was walking out of a restaurant with a friend around 5:15 p.m. Saturday when Neal suddenly attacked him, CBS News reported. Neal stabbed Todd in the head and pierced his skull, then stabbed him in the stomach and punctured a lung, according to investigators.

Todd told police he didn’t know Neal and that Neal didn’t demand money or anything else, leading cops to describe the assault as a “random, violent attack.” He was scheduled for two surgeries immediately after the attack, according to a police report.

Neal told police that “a voice was telling him that someone was going to get him for all the things he [has] done. So [Neal] was waiting right there to get the someone,” the Washington Post reported.

Neal was recently released from prison after serving a 12-year sentence for first-degree sex abuse, according to WRC. His first court date is scheduled for April 6.