U-Haul truck crashes into Raytown church during police chase of sword-wielding man

A man who allegedly threatened two people with a sword led Raytown police on a low-speed chase early Thursday that ended when the man crashed a rental truck into a Raytown church’s entryway.

The incident started about 5 a.m. when officers went to a Raytown gas station to check reports of a man “making statements about believing in God” and placing a sword against the necks of two people, police said.

When officers arrived, the man allegedly fled in a U-Haul box truck. Officers followed the truck, which was moving about 35 mph, for more than 40 minutes into Kansas City and back into Raytown.

Police determined during the pursuit that children were in the truck’s cab. Although police used stop sticks to deflate the truck’s tires, the driver continued driving. He headed to the First Baptist Church of Raytown at 10500 E. Missouri 350 and crashed the truck through the front doors.

The driver backed the truck up and then crashed into the doors a second time, police said.

Officers surrounded the truck and ordered the man out. He displayed a knife before coming out without a weapon in his hands. Although he stepped away from the truck, he refused officers’ commands to come toward them. When the man moved back toward the truck, officers used a stun gun to take him into custody.

Jackson County prosecutors charged Phillip D. Perkins, 44, of Kansas City, with two counts of assault, four counts of endangering a child and one count each of resisting arrest and property damage. Prosecutors requested a $100,000 bond.

Officers found more than 20 weapons on the man, including a sword, knives and a blowgun. A woman and four children ranging in age from 3 to 8 were in the truck. Officers believed the woman and children were not being held against their will.

The extent of the damage to the First Baptist Church entrance still was being assessed, said Alyson Browning, the church’s communication director. Jackson County prosecutors estimated the damage at $25,000.

If the entrance has to be closed during repairs that stretch through the weekend, church members arriving for Sunday services will be able to use entrances on the church’s east and west sides, she said.

The interior of the church had no damage.

This story was originally published February 25, 2016 at 7:35 AM with the headline "U-Haul truck crashes into Raytown church during police chase of sword-wielding man."