A firefighter paramedic in Missouri was killed in the line of duty on Sunday after he was allegedly stabbed in the back of an ambulance while transporting a patient to the hospital.

Kansas City Fire Department Fire Medic Graham Hoffman, 29, died on Sunday a few hours after he was stabbed in the chest by a patient being taken to the hospital following a routine medical call from police, the city of Kansas City said in a news release. 

Hoffman’s partner “initiated a crew emergency” after the stabbing and additional fire and police units responded to the scene, the city said. He was taken to North Kansas City Hospital, where he died in the Intensive Care Unit despite “heroic efforts” from KCFD paramedics while taking him to the hospital and staff in the Emergency Room and surgery.

“His KCFD ambulance was an essential lifesaving tool,” the Missouri Division of Fire Safety posted on Facebook. “But early this morning, Hoffman’s ambulance became a crime scene and Hoffman a victim of an unfathomable crime – allegedly stabbed to death by a patient he was treating.”

Hoffman, who joined KCFD in 2022, was described by his department as “compassionate, caring, loving and a leader on and off the job,” and a “dedicated professional who loved serving his city.”

The Clay County Prosecutor’s Office announced charges on Sunday against Shanetta Bossell, 38, in Hoffman’s death. 

Jail records show Bossell is facing three felony charges: first-degree murder, resisting/interfering with arrest for a felony and third-degree assault. She is also charged with armed criminal action, and her bond is set at $1 million.

Shanetta Bossell, 38, who is charged in the stabbing death of Kansas City Fire Medic Graham Hoffman, was in jail last week for allegedly biting a police officer (Clay County Sheriff’s Office)

Bossell was arrested on April 23 for allegedly biting a Platte City police officer and was charged with assault and resisting arrest in that instance, local outlet KCTV 5 reported. 

Judge Louis Angles reviewed that case and set Bossell’s bond at $10,000, which was posted sometime before Saturday, according to KCTV.

The Missouri Division of Fire Safety said “hearts are heavy as our minds struggle to comprehend the incomprehensible.”

“Hoffman had committed his life to answering the alarm bell no matter the emergency, regardless of the circumstances,” the organization wrote. “He was a lifesaver.”