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Las Vegas police say deadly stabbing started over cellphone

A 31-year-old man was arrested on murder charges Thursday after Las Vegas police said he stabbed a friend in the neck outside a McDonald’s restaurant.

Asa Funderburk was booked at the Clark County jail for the stabbing death of Brandon Pickford, according to a Metro report released Friday.

Police said Funderburk and Pickford argued about 8:15 a.m. inside the restaurant at 2650 Sahara Ave., near Rancho Drive, because Pickford wouldn’t let Funderburk use his cellphone.

Several witnesses told police Pickford asked Funderburk “if he wanted to go right now” and said “I will put you to sleep” inside McDonald’s before the fight spilled into the parking lot. One of the witnesses recorded the fight on his phone.

Funderburk later told detectives he stabbed Pickford in the neck with a 6-inch pointed stick after Pickford pushed him into traffic and spit on him, the report said.

Funderburk ran away and tried to hide in a vacant house, but was located by Metro patrol officers about two hours after the stabbing.

The police report did not list an address for Funderburk and said he was homeless.

Contact reporter Mike Blasky at mblasky@reviewjournal.com. Follow @blasky on Twitter.

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