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A Missoula man accused of stabbing his roommate 35 times in the head, arms, chest and back allegedly told officers he had done it in self-defense.

Prosecutors disagreed, and Brent Hawkey made his initial appearance in Missoula County Justice Court on Tuesday on a felony count of aggravated assault.

On Sunday, Hawkey, 53, called 911 and told a dispatcher he had stabbed a man who was visiting him at his home on the 16000 block of Highway 93 North.

When deputies arrived, Hawkey allegedly told them he had been assaulted, and that he didn’t know who the stabbing victim was or where he was.

The man was found inside, unresponsive in a pool of blood. In court, deputy county attorney Mark Handelman said the man was taken to Providence St. Patrick Hospital, where he underwent surgery.

Deputies at the scene reported that some of the injuries on the victim were consistent with defensive wounds.