An Anchorage man was arraigned for allegedly stabbing his former supervisor in the chest with a pair of scissors, and charging documents filed by police cite a potential racial or religious motivation for the attempted murder.

Gordon S. Samel III, 33, was arrested Monday and arraigned on several charges, including attempted murder, assault, and burglary, in connection with the stabbing.

In the APD affidavit, officers state Samel stabbed the victim, a supervisor and previous coworker, with a long pair of silver scissors. Samel reportedly worked at the Nordstrom cafe in August of 2017, and was personally acquainted with the victim.

APD detectives said Samel approached the cafe manager inside the back office, and stabbed him in the chest with a pair of silver scissors. The manager could be seen staggering out of the area, clutching his chest and bleeding. Charging documents state Samel "calmly walked out behind him."

Another employee told police he heard the manager screaming that he'd been "stabbed in the heart." That witness then hurled a chair at Samel, and noted in the report, "Samel did not seem phased by the chair."

The victim fled the area, and was later found, covered in blood, after collapsing in a room behind the espresso bar. He was taken to the hospital for the stab wound, a "serious physical injury" to his chest.

As for Samel, charging documents state he left Nordstrom on the street level entrance, later to be found at home and arrested without incident.

Also at Samel's home, his mother's boyfriend spoke with police, telling them that Samel used to work at Nordstrom's restaurant, but stopped due to conflicts with his boss.

"His statement indicated a possibility that the conflict was due to the boss being Muslim and his associated political views," APD wrote in the report. This sentiment was expressed only by the boyfriend, and was not expressly declared by Samel himself.

At the arraignment in Anchorage on Tuesday, prosecutors cited the potential threat to the victim, as the incident seemed targeted. The judge set bail for $100,000 cash performance and appointed a public defender to represent Samel.