Crossville Man Lies To Police, Faces Domestic Charges

A Crossville man faces charges for filing a false police report after he said he was stabbed outside a Crossville gas station.

56-year-old Wallace Jewell Rhea actually was stabbed by his wife in self defense, according to police reports. He also faces domestic assault charges.

The incident happened Tuesday night when Rhea said he and his wife were headed to work when they stopped at Elite Exxon on Highway 127. Rhea said he was approached by a man who asked for money. When Rhea told him he had no money, the man stabbed him. Police responded to Elite Exxon on Highway 127 and found no man. Workers at the store said they saw nothing out of the ordinary.

Police then spoke to Rhea’s wife, Lisa, who admitted her husband’s story was false. She said her husband has struck her across the face as they drove down Interstate 40 and then he tackled her, according to reports. Nursing broken ribs from a previous incident, Lisa Rhea stabbed her husband with a pocket knife to get him off her.

Officers found the knife in the rear passenger compartment of the vehicle and it had blood on it. Lisa Rhea also had dried blood on her lip and a slight swelling of the cheekbone.