WILKES-BARRE - The attorneys representing murder suspect Amir Edwards are seeking funding to conduct a competency exam, citing an aggravated assault case in which another attorney questioned his competency.

Edwards, 22, of North Pine Street in Hazleton, is charged with criminal homicide in the death of his friend, Zachary J. Richards, 27, who was fatally stabbed in the back inside a home at 615 Cleveland St., Hazleton, in September.In a motion filed Tuesday, his attorneys, Joanna Bryn Smith and John Pike, say his lawyer in a pending aggravated assault and robbery case in Carbon County unsuccessfully sought funding to conduct a competency exam."Given the gravity and nature of the charges in the above-docketed case and given that the issue of defendant's mental competency has been raised, undersigned counsel for defendant believe that a mental competency exam is necessary in order to effectively represent defendant at trial," the attorneys wrote.The filing requests $1,160 to hire a psychiatrist to evaluate Edwards.Edwards is being held on $1 million bail in the Carbon County assault case in which he is accused of pistol-whipping and punching Manoj V. Patel during a hold-up at the Tresckow Superfood Store in Tresckow in September 2014. Patel suffered three fractures to his face during the beating.Edwards is being held without bail in the homicide case.According to police, Edwards admitted stabbing Richards, but claimed he did it after Richards pointed a rifle at him and demanded he leave the home. Edwards grabbed a knife from a butcher block and stabbed Richards once in the back, police said.He is slated to stand trial in that case next month.