Residents of a small California college town are on edge after three stabbings in less than a week that killed a student, a beloved homeless man known as “Compassion Guy,” and left a local woman in critical condition.
The FBI has been called in to assist Davis police, who say they are still investigating whether the three “brutal” stabbings are related, but noted that the description of the suspect in both Monday and Saturday night’s attacks is “substantially similar.”
In the most recent attack, a 64-year-old woman was stabbed through a tent at a homeless camp near 2nd and L Streets around 11:46 p.m. Monday. She is in critical condition, police said.
The assailant, who has not yet been caught, is described as a fair-skinned man with curly hair, who stands 5-5 feet 9 inches tall and has a thin build. It is believed he was wearing a black or blue sweatshirt, black Adidas pants with stripes and was carrying a brown backpack.
Police said the description closely resembles the suspect who fatally stabbed UC Davis student Karim Abou Najm Saturday night in Sycamore Park. A few nights earlier, 50-year-old David Breaux, who was a fixture in the community, was found stabbed to death on a bench in another park near campus.
A 64-year-old woman is in critical condition after she was stabbed Monday through the tent she slept in in Davis, California. It is the third stabbing in less than a week. Two other stabbings claimed the lives of Karim Abou Najm and David Breaux
Davis police chief Darren Pytel said in a news conference Tuesday that while they’ve combed through hundreds of tips, they “have not yet been able to positively correlate the three crimes” that are “particularly violent and brutal” and that they’ still waiting for evidence to come back.”
Pytel spoke about the similarities between the attacks. He said the two “particularly brutal” murders took place in city parks, while the suspect or suspects in the second murder and Monday night’s attack both had contact with witnesses. That indicates bold behavior that is of “significant concern” to police, Pytel said.
A ‘detailed search’ of the downtown area failed to find a suspect, the department said in a statement.
The shelter order was lifted, but the suspect or suspects remain free and police urged residents to “stay aware of your surroundings.”
The FBI has been called in to assist with the investigation after Monday night’s stabbing brought the total to three in less than a week.
A map shows where each stabbing took place. Davis police chief Darren Pytel said Tuesday they “have not yet been able to make a positive connection between the three crimes” which are “particularly violent and brutal,” but said the suspect in Monday and Saturday night’s attacks ” are substantially comparable
On Saturday, another stabbing took the life of UC Davis senior Karim Abou Najm. The 20-year-old computer science student was on his way home when he was killed in Davis’ Sycamore Park
Pytel said police were called to the scene late Monday evening where a 64-year-old woman, whose name has not been released, was able to “give a description of the attacker and she could tell us what happened.”
Isaac Chessman and Christine Berrios, a couple in a neighboring tent, told KCRA they heard the woman scream for help. Chessman added that he thought he had met the suspect earlier that day.
“So we’re sitting in front of the tent and I said, ‘Honey, this doesn’t feel right,’ and I saw a dude running across the road and started running, but he stopped past each tree to blend in with the tree because it dark. I noticed that because that’s something you would do when you’re figuring something out,” he said.
“I said, ‘Hey bro,’ and he starts walking normally, and then I said, ‘You look like the dude they described stabbing people.’ He leaves and I started chasing after him and my wife said, “Don’t leave me here,” Cheessman said.
On Saturday, another stabbing took the life of UC Davis senior Karim Abou Najm. The 20-year-old computer science student was on his way home when he was killed at around 9:15 p.m. in Davis’ Sycamore Park, according to police.
A resident heard the disturbance and went outside to try to help, even briefly interacting with the suspect who then fled. He found Abou Najm with multiple stab wounds.
The suspect in that attack was described as “a fair-skinned man, possibly Hispanic, 5-5 feet 8 inches tall, 19-23 years old, with long curly loose hair.”
He was According to police, he was last seen wearing a white hat, light-colored T-shirt and button-down shirt, riding a men’s bicycle with straight handlebars.
Karim Abou Najm, a 20-year-old computer science student, was due to graduate in six weeks and had two jobs scheduled, his father Majdi Abou Najm said.
Abou Najm would graduate in six weeks, his father, Majdi Abou Najm, told Sacramento ABC affiliate KXTV.
“Karim was a miracle of energy, a free spirit, someone who just wants to see goodness around him,” he said.
Abou Najm already had two jobs planned after graduating.
“We moved out of Lebanon in 2018 when the situation in Lebanon started to go a bit in the wrong direction,” said Abou Najm. “We came here hoping for safety.”
“I want this to be his memory: a bundle of energy, a bundle of positivity,” Majdi Abou Najm said of his son. ‘Someone full of ambition, proud of his roots, who wanted to make this world a better place.’
The spate of attacks began Thursday with the fatal stabbing of 50-year-old David Breaux, known as the “Compassion Guy,” who was killed in Central Park on the park bench where he often slept.
The spate of attacks began Thursday with the fatal stabbing of David Breaux, known as the “Compassion Guy,” who was killed in Central Park on the park bench where he often slept
A memorial erected at Compassion Bank in Davis to honor 50-year-old David Henry Breaux, who was found stabbed to death last week. He was a fixture in the community for over a decade
Breaux, who has been a fixture in the community for the past decade, was “instrumental” in the addition of a “Compassion Bench” at the corner of 3rd and C Streets in 2013
Breaux, who has been a fixture in the community for the past decade, was “instrumental” in the addition of a “Compassion Bench” at the corner of 3rd and C Streets in 2013.
“The death of David Breaux is utterly devastating,” Davis Mayor Will Arnold said. “Many of us knew David. We spoke to him. We shared his vision for a kinder world. We connected with what it means to be human and humane.’
On the bench, he asked people their definition of the word “compassion.” He later published his notes as a collection of anonymous writings.
Like so many of you, I mourn the death of David Henry Breaux, known as the Compassion Guy. … David lived a life with real purpose, to connect humanity for the greater good, something we should all strive for,” the UC Davis chancellor said in a statement.
The school has expanded the hours available for safe rides from campus to off-campus locations as the investigation continues.
The UC Davis chief of police said security efforts are being doubled on campus and that the school has hired private security and brought in officers from UC San Francisco and UC Berkeley.