TREASURE ISLAND — A disgruntled Captain Bill's Beach Kitchen employee stabbed a coworker in the face and back after the staff supposedly "talked about his girlfriend being a hooker," according to police.

Christopher Diamond, 35, of St. Petersburg, told Treasure Island police he "wanted to kill his coworkers by slitting their throats" because of the comments about his girlfriend, according to an arrest report.

Police said Diamond was unprovoked before he thrust a knife toward Dylan Cook's face while the two worked in the kitchen on Monday around 8 p.m. The two hadn't spoken to each other in the moments leading up to the altercation.

Cook tried to deflect the knife with his hand, police said, but he was wounded on the left side of his face. Then, police said, Diamond stabbed Cook in the back, where the blade remained lodged in his skin as the handle fell off.

This wasn't the first time the two fought, police said. A few weeks before, Diamond grabbed Cook by the throat, but a police report wasn't filed.

After the stabbing, police said Diamond rode away on his motorcycle to flee officers. They later found him hiding in his girlfriend's backyard.

Diamond was arrested on a charge of first-degree attempted murder. He also faces a charge of felony battery for kicking a man. He was being held in the Pinellas County jail on Tuesday in lieu of $105,000 bail.

Contact Sara DiNatale at sdinatale@tampabay.com. Follow @sara_dinatale.