Former Kansas youth pastor Matthew Richards sentenced to prison for stabbing his family and setting fire to hide financial troubles.
A former Kansas City-area youth pastor sobbed in court while reading from the Bible. His crime: attempting to murder his wife and five children before setting their home ablaze.
Matthew Lee Richards, 43, will serve 29 years and 5 months for the brutal September 2023 attack in their Shawnee home. As previously reported by Metro Voice, he stabbed his family in the predawn hours as they lay in their beds, then tried to burn down the house to cover his crimes.
“I stabbed my family,” Richards told police after his arrest. One child later revealed a chilling detail to investigators: being in bed when their father began slashing at them with a knife. Another asked simply, “Dad, why do you have the knife?”
The violence erupted at 3:47 a.m. when police and firefighters responded to frantic 911 calls. His wife and three children suffered serious injuries that required hospitalization. His 19-year-old son and two other children were treated and released.
Family faced eviction
The attack came as the family faced eviction — a secret Richards had kept from them. Court records show they owed $155,429 on their mortgage when foreclosure began in November 2022. The home was sold in June 2023.
Until the attack, Richards ran the preschool program at Crossroads Christian Church. His sister blamed undiagnosed mental illness for the violence. According to court documents, the attack shocked the local religious community.
“I stand here today to address the court, my community kids and their parents who relied on me,” Richards said, reading from a prepared statement. “Most importantly, my family, to ask for forgiveness and grace which is something I know I don’t deserve again.”
Richards pleaded guilty to the charges on February 11, 2025.
Prosecutors emphasized the calculated nature of the attack: Richards waited until his family was asleep before beginning his rampage, then tried to destroy the evidence by setting fire to their home.
–Dwight Widaman
