Sword-carrying man stripped of blade and attacked with own weapon, Boulder police say
Victim arrested last month on concealed-weapon charge related to knives
By Mitchell Byars
Staff Writer
POSTED: 02/08/2018 11:44:25 AM MST | UPDATED: ABOUT 13 HOURS AGO
Cody Parker (Boulder County Sheriff's Office)
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The victim who police say was cut by a samurai sword-wielding man in Boulder on Wednesday was injured with his own weapon — and previously had been arrested while practicing with the blade outside a hotel last month.
Cody Scott Parker, 26, faces a first-degree assault charge, and a woman in his company, Aneta Urban, 38, faces a conspiracy charge after police say Parker cut Christopher Dassau, 35, on his hand.
Christopher Dassau (Boulder County Sheriff's Office)
According to an arrest affidavit, Dassau told police he was walking in the 1400 block of Canyon Boulevard around 3:30 p.m. Wednesday with his katana-style sword strapped to his back, the way officers had instructed him to carry the blade legally after his arrest in January.
In that case, Dassau is facing a charge of carrying a concealed weapon in connection with knives he also was carrying at the time.
Dassau told police that he felt someone tugging on the sword and turned around to find Parker had pulled it away from him. Dassau said Parker told him, "You got my (expletive) old lady jumped," and then said, "I'll (expletive) kill you."
According to the affidavit, Dassau said Parker then stepped toward him and hit him with the sword on the upper left thigh, but the blade only caught his clothing.
Dassau said he kept stepping back, but Parker followed him. Parker then raised the sword and Dassau tried to catch it, according to the affidavit, resulting in a large gash between his thumb and index finger that required 16 stitches.
Aneta Urban appears in court at the Boulder County Jail on Thursday. (Paul Aiken / Staff Photographer)
Dassau told police that Parker started running and met up with a woman later identified as Urban, who told Parker, "Baby, take the bike, get out of here. You did what I told you to do."
Urban reportedly had gotten into an argument a few weeks ago with Dassau's fiance that resulted in police being called. Dassau told officers that Urban made up a story that got his fiance cited.
Police initially were not able to find Parker, but located Urban, who was uncooperative with officers. They released Urban in the hopes that she would lead them to Parker, which she did, according to the affidavit.
Both were located and arrested near 13th Street and Arapahoe Avenue.
Parker refused to speak to police officers.
Both he and Urban remain in custody at the Boulder County Jail and appeared in court there on Thursday.
During that hearing, defense attorney Emily Briggs said that while both are currently homeless, Urban has been in Colorado for more than 10 years while Parker has been in the state since 2016.
But Boulder County Deputy District Attorney Mark Grimaldi asked for a higher bond, noting the seriousness of the charges against Parker.
"He took a weapon from a stranger, at that point, and took several swings," Grimaldi said. "This is clearly a community safety issue."
Grimaldi also said Urban has failed to appear in court six times in previous cases.
Boulder County Judge Noel Blum set Parker's bond at $15,000 and Urban's at $2,000, and scheduled them to be formally charged on Tuesday. Neither is permitted to contact Dassau, who could not be reached for comment Thursday.
Dassau posted photos of his injury to his Facebook page, and wrote, "I'm going to be OK."
He's due in court March 2 on his concealed-weapon case.
Following his January arrest, Dassau — who is from New Orleans — told the Daily Camera he carried the weapons because he and his fiance had been threatened on several occasions while smoking outside the hotel, where he had been staying for several months.
"I felt like I didn't want to be bullied," Dassau said. "It was mostly for show so I could keep the guys who were harassing me at bay. It wasn't any crazy stuff."
Mitchell Byars: 303-473-1329,
byarsm@dailycamera.com or twitter.com/mitchellbyars