Mountain View police say a 79-year-old man was assaulted by his 26-year-old roommate wielding a traditional Japanese wooden sword.

According to police, the two were arguing over rent money on Monday, Sept. 14, when the suspect, Jefferey Brenion, allegedly began throwing punches at the victim's face. The suspect then allegedly took a bamboo sword traditionally used for martial arts training, known as a bokken or bokuto, and hit the victim under the eye, causing a minor laceration.

According to police spokesperson Liz Wylie, Brenion then took a kitchen knife and threatened to stab his roommate. At that point, another roommate in an adjacent room entered to mediate the struggle.

According to Wylie, the victim then tried to call 911 on his cell phone, but was stopped by Brenion, who threw the phone on the ground and broke it. The third roommate was able to call police, however, who arrived and arrested Brenion on several charges, including assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse and preventing another from making an emergency call.

The victim was taken to the hospital, where medical personnel determined that he had suffered no major injuries.

— Katherine Tolentino