Report: Machete attacker on Kentucky campus asked about politics

LEXINGTON, Ky. – A man armed with a machete and several other knives allegedly attacked a female student at a coffee shop on the campus of Transylvania University in Kentucky Friday morning.

Lexington police say that Mitchell W. Adkins, 19, is in custody and call the incident "isolated." The university's president said the victim is safe and in the hospital with her family.

The Lexington Herald-Leader reports that a witness said Adkins entered the coffee shop and began asking people inside about their political affiliation.

"A guy came in, banged something, a hatchet or an axe, on the table and said 'the day of reckoning has come,'" Tristan Reynolds told the newspaper. "He asked somebody what their political affiliation was, they said 'Republican' and the guy said 'you are safe.' And then I realized what was going on and started getting people out."

Lexington Police Chief Mark Barnard said that Adkins was subdued quickly, and police believe he acted alone. Adkins is reportedly charged with first and fourth-degree assault, as well as three counts of first-degree wanton endangerment.