Army veteran charged with attacking two homeless men in Memphis

A Tennessee Army veteran faces charges of first-degree murder and assault in what authorities say were two separate attacks on homeless men.

The latest attack occurred just before 3 a.m. on May 31, when police responded to 911 calls and found a man with gunshot wounds outside a Courtyard by Marriott hotel in Memphis. The man, identified as Shaun Rhea, died at the hospital, according to court documents obtained by USA TODAY on Wednesday.

The first attack occurred just six days before Rhea’s murder on May 25 at the same hotel. A man told police he was in a portable bathroom outside the hotel where he sleeps every day when an attacker grabbed him, put a knife to his face and cut him behind his left ear as he tried to escape. The attacker also cut his right thumb.

Here’s what we know about the crimes and the veteran who was charged Tuesday.

Killing of Shaun Rhea

A security guard told police he saw a man with a knife spraying Rhea with pepper spray on the day of the fatal shooting. The guard recorded the attack on his phone and told the attacker what he was doing in hopes he would leave, court documents say.