Pacers Fan Charged With Stabbing Knicks Fans

Per documents obtained by WXIN, a 24-year-old Indiana Pacers fan faces three charges for allegedly stabbing two New York Knicks supporters at a Carmel, IN brewery during the team's Game 2 clash in the Eastern Conference Finals.

The docs state that Jarrett Funke faces two Level 5 felonies (battery by means of a deadly weapon and battery resulting in serious bodily injury) and one Level 6 felony (criminal recklessness committed with a deadly weapon). Level 5 convictions face one-to-six years in prison and as much as a $10,000 fine while Level 6 sentences carry the same fine and 6-to-30 months in prison.

The alleged incident is said to have occurred during Game 2 of the series on Friday night, which saw the Pacers earn a 114-109 win over the Knicks at Madison Square Garden en route to a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven set.

When officers from the Carmel Police Department were called to the scene, one victim said to have been stabbed in the back while another had a leg injury. Police had originally been called when a man identified as Funke was allegedly involved in a fight but were later told not to respond as the person had left. Funke is said to have returned and engaged the victims on the brewery's patio.

In interviews with law enforcement, the victims say that Funke had been confrontational before the incident on the patio, with Funke said to have forcibly removed a Knicks hat from one of the victims. One of the victims said they “briefly displayed a black folding pocket knife to deter (Funke) but re-pocketed it, as he had no intention of using it.” For his part, Funke claimed that the Knicks fans were the aggressors but multiple witnesses labeled him the “primary aggressor in this incident.”

Funke is said to be facing a hearing in Huntington County on Tuesday, hours before the Knicks and Pacers engage in Game 4 of their ongoing series (8 p.m. ET, TNT). This isn't the first incident between the rival fanbases, as Knicks fans previously threw garbage at a man wearing a Tyrese Haliburton Pacers jersey while they celebrated their Eastern Conference semifinal victory over the Boston Celtics.

The man in the prior incident, Hans Perez, has been invited to attend Game 4 after Haliburton extended him an invitation during an edition of "The Pat McAfee Show."