Man charged with repeated attack on homeless man | News

MEMPHIS, Tennessee – A man already charged with the premeditated murder of a homeless man now faces additional charges for a similar alleged attack.

Memphis Police (MPD) say 41-year-old Karl Loucks attacked a homeless man in a portable restroom in the parking lot of the Marriott hotel on Front Street. The attack occurred on May 25 just before 7 p.m. According to police, Loucks stormed into the restroom with a knife while the homeless man was inside, asked him, “Why don’t you clean up?” and cut the man behind his left ear and right thumb.

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Loucks was arrested about a week later, on May 31, but for a different crime. According to MPD, Loucks shot another homeless man in the same area on Front Street on May 31. In that attack, a security guard told police Loucks pepper-sprayed the homeless man before shooting and killing him with a rifle.

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After the May 31 murder, FOX13 reached out to MPD to find out if they believed Loucks was connected to other attacks on homeless people. MPD told FOX13: “We recognize the strong likelihood that there are additional cases and are currently working to identify additional victims who may be connected. As you can imagine, this process is time consuming as the victims are homeless and often move.”

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A FOX13 investigation found that Loucks served as a medic in Afghanistan. He claimed he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder during his deployment.

“I wasn’t scared at all,” Loucks said in an interview in 2019. “I joined the army to go to war, so I was pretty enthusiastic and happy.”