Christopher Sumbs: Doorbell Incident, Charges, and Competency Review

Christopher Sumbs is the man arrested in downtown Las Vegas in July 2021 after a Ring doorbell camera recorded him threatening to rape and kill a woman inside her home. The footage spread on social media, led police to him within about a day, and resulted in felony charges in Nevada along with the discovery of outstanding warrants in California and Minnesota. A judge later ordered him to undergo a psychological evaluation to determine whether he was competent to stand trial.

What Happened at the Door

On the evening of July 21, 2021, Sumbs, then 40, walked up to a home on South 6th Street near Charleston Boulevard and Las Vegas Boulevard.¹ The resident, Amanda Nowak, was home alone. According to the arrest report, he looked through an open kitchen window before moving to the front door, where the Ring camera began recording.²

Nowak stayed inside and called 911. Her husband, who was away, spoke to Sumbs through the doorbell intercom. On the recording, Sumbs said, “What I’m looking for is the girl in the house cause I’m going to rape her and kill her. Can you have her open the door?” He also claimed to have a knife and a gun.² He eventually walked away, “muttering incoherent thoughts,” the arrest report said.³ Nowak told police she was “scared and stressed,” then posted the footage to Facebook, where it went viral.⁴

How Police Identified Him

The next day, July 22, Las Vegas city marshals spotted a man matching the description from the video and stopped him.⁵ When Las Vegas Metropolitan Police officers questioned him, he refused to give his name and told them he was the “Holy Spirit.”²

A fingerprint scan initially returned no match, and he was booked into the Clark County Detention Center as a John Doe. Police later confirmed his identity as Christopher David Sumbs and learned he was already a fugitive on a California warrant.²

The Charges Against Him

Prosecutors in Nevada charged Sumbs with:

Aggravated stalking, a category B felony under Nevada law that carries two to fifteen years in prison and a possible fine of up to $5,000⁶
Attempted burglary of a residence
Coercion with the threat of force
Making a false statement to a public officer

He was also held on a fugitive warrant from Los Angeles County, California.⁵ Separately, the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office in Minnesota had issued a warrant on October 9, 2020, for a probation violation tied to two earlier assault charges, one of them a felony.³

On July 23, 2021, Sumbs was denied bail at a hearing he did not attend, partly because of his fugitive status.³

Competency Evaluation and Case Status

Sumbs at first refused to leave the jail for a scheduled court date. When he did appear, the judge ordered a competency evaluation.⁷ His conduct — refusing to identify himself, calling himself the Holy Spirit, and muttering as he walked away from the home — had raised questions about his mental state.

On August 23, 2021, District Court Judge Christy Craig signed an order turning Sumbs over to the state for a full physical and psychological evaluation. If he were found competent to stand trial, he was to be returned to court to face the pending charges.⁸ He remained in custody at the Clark County Detention Center as of that date. The outcome of the evaluation and any later trial proceedings have not been publicly reported.