Waikato detectives investigating a random knife attack on two men are appealing for an African couple who witnessed the attack to come forward.
The Armed Offenders Squad was called to the corner of Victoria and Queen Streets, Cambridge on Friday night after two men, one aged 31 and the other 34, received stab wounds.
One man received serious stab wounds to his left arm and face and his friend has a stab wound in his back after trying to help his companion. They were taken to Waikato Hospital.
“It appears our offender has been walking with a woman in an area opposite the Town Hall and he has taken exception to two men walking in front of them who have been laughing at something as they walked home,” Detective Dean Schrader of the Western Waikato CIB says.
Schrader says the alleged offender approached the victims without warning and tried to provoke them, punching one in the face.
Police located the alleged offender at a Hamilton Rd address and the AOS were called.
The man’s male and female flatmates were unaware of what had occurred and came out of the house after police appeals and a short time later the alleged offender surrendered to police.
A cordon was put in place as a forensic scene examination was carried out.
Detective Scott McDougall says a witness to the attack recalls seeing a man and a woman sitting on a park bench opposite the town hall. The witness described the couple as male and female Somalis aged in their 20s who physically intervened in the attack.
McDougall says the investigation team wants to speak to the couple to establish what they saw and to also acknowledge their actions.
A 23-year-old local man is in custody facing two charges of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm. Police have recovered blood stained clothing and a knife from his home.
Meanwhile the 31-year-old stabbing victim underwent surgery Waikato Hospital. His 34-year-old friend is in a stable condition in the hospital’s high dependency unit.
Source: ONE News
