An 18-year-old male victim was stabbed three times Monday night outside his Kentia Avenue residence by four assailants. The man told police he was standing with his bicycle outside his home on the 600 block of Kentia when a pickup truck pulled up, and the occupants got out and demanded his bicycle and cell phone. The man turned to leave and he was attacked.
The assailants took the bike but not the cell phone, and escaped. The man, who was treated for his non-life threatening wounds at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, said he couldn’t identify or fully describe the suspects. The case is being investigated as an assault with a deadly weapon and robbery and isn’t thought to be gang-related.
Police aren’t connecting the stabbing to an incident which occurred early Saturday morning, when two brothers ages 20 and 23 were attacked outside their residence in the 700 block of West Micheltorena Street at about 2 a.m. In that incident, which also doesn’t appear to be gang-related, according to Sgt. Lorenzo Duarte, a car stopped and a few suspects emerged, one drawing a knife. An altercation commenced, resulting in the two brothers getting stabbed.
They were taken to Cottage Hospital, where both were treated for non-life threatening injuries. The two victims told the police they didn’t get a good look at the suspects, but stated they hadn’t seen the attackers before. There was no description of the vehicle, and detectives are looking into the motive of that crime.