‘He had so much blood’: Witness describes finding 13-year-old stabbing victim in Fresno

Officers arrived at the scene, near the intersection of Lewis Street and Clark Avenue, to find the young teen suffering from a stab wound to the upper body. He was last reported to be in critical but stable condition following emergency surgery.

Imelda Cruz, who lives nearby, was returning from the gym when she spotted the boy running down the street.

“I drove up beside him,” Cruz said. “I noticed something strange about him and asked, ‘Do you need help?’ The poor child looked at me and said, ‘Yes, I do need help, look.’”

She says he raised his arm to show her the wound, and she called 911.

“He had so much blood. His clothes were covered in it. I’ve never seen the child in our neighborhood before. He was pale and exhausted and told me he had just been stabbed.”

Cruz said the boy’s arm was already in a cast from a previous injury, which made the attack even more disturbing.

“How is it possible that a child like that would be stabbed—and at that time in the morning? I just don’t understand,” she said. “We need to take care of our children, now more than ever. I pray to God that the child is okay. I wish all the best for his family.”

Sgt. Larry Bowlan with the Fresno Police Department says detectives believe the stabbing may have stemmed from a disturbance in an alley just north of the location.

“It does sound like he was involved in some type of disturbance with at least one other subject,” Bowlan said. “One individual was found nearby and detained for questioning.”

However, investigators say the person detained has not been confirmed as a suspect.

“They were simply in the area when officers arrived and caught their attention,” Bowlan added. “We did not have a lot to go on in terms of a suspect description, and the victim wasn’t able to provide much information.”

Detectives continue working to determine what led to the attack and whether the individual detained was involved.