KEY POINT SUMMARY
• Firefighter stabbed to death while treating patient in ambulance
• Suspect Shanetta Boswell had just posted bail for biting a cop
• Paramedic Graham Hoffman died despite desperate rescue efforts
• Boswell was charged with first-degree murder and held on a $1M bond
• Victim remembered as a compassionate and dedicated lifesaver
A firefighter was stabbed to death in a shocking attack inside an ambulance has rocked Kansas City. Paramedic Graham Hoffman was treating a bleeding woman when she suddenly pulled a knife and fatally stabbed him, authorities said.
Firefighter Stabbed To Death During Emergency Response
Hoffman, a 29-year-old Kansas City firefighter and paramedic, responded to a welfare call around 1 a.m. Sunday. The woman, later identified as 39-year-old Shanetta Boswell, initially refused help but changed her mind.
While being transported to the hospital, Boswell allegedly launched a frenzied attack. Cops trailing the ambulance saw it veer off the road before the driver jumped out, screaming that the woman had a knife.
Ambulance Driver’s Desperate Efforts Couldn’t Save Hoffman
Officers rushed to the scene and found Hoffman bleeding heavily from the chest. As they tried to subdue Boswell, she reportedly fought back and even tried to steal the ambulance. In the chaos, she allegedly bit an officer before being restrained.
Despite frantic efforts by the ambulance driver to revive Hoffman, he later died at the hospital, authorities confirmed.
Firefighter Stabbed To Death By Woman Out On Bail
Shockingly, Boswell had been released just days earlier after allegedly biting a police officer during a separate arrest. On April 23, she faced charges of second-degree assault and resisting arrest but posted a $10,000 bond and walked free.
Authorities revealed she had a previous run-in on March 31 when she rear-ended a car and fled, leading to a citation.
Boswell Now Faces Murder Charges In Ambulance Killing
Boswell is now charged with first-degree murder, resisting arrest, and third-degree assault. A judge set her bond at a staggering $1 million.
Officials blasted the tragedy as completely avoidable, noting Boswell’s violent past should have kept her off the streets. The investigation into Hoffman’s death is ongoing.
Kansas City Mourns Fallen Firefighter Stabbed To Death
Hoffman had served with the Kansas City Fire Department since 2022. Colleagues remembered him as “compassionate, caring, loving, and a leader both on and off the job.”
“He answered the alarm bell no matter the emergency,” said the Missouri Division of Fire Safety. “This lifesaver became the victim of an unfathomable crime.”