A woman strolling around with her dog in tow was stabbed with a samurai sword and her pet was killed in an unprovoked attack in Los Angeles, California.
The suspect, 23-year old Eric Herrera, was arrested at the scene in the Mid-Wilshire neighborhood Tuesday night on suspicion of attempted murder.
Authorities reported that they received several 911 calls around 11:20 p.m. reporting an assault with a deadly weapon in the 1200 block of South Victoria Avenue.
Once officers arrived, they saw Herrera walking in the middle of the street holding a sword.
According to a LAPD officer, “Officers attempted to defuse the situation and ordered Herrera to put his sword down. However, he refused to cooperate and came towards officers with blade in hand. Officers responded by using a taser on Herrera, after which he was taken into custody without further incident.”
The whole process was seen on video footage taken by news media and Herrera was shown handcuffed while sitting on the ground after being apprehended.
Meanwhile, the 43-year old dog owner was discovered nearby suffering from multiple lacerations to her arm from the samurai sword. Officers quickly applied a tourniquet at the scene to staunch blood flow before the woman was taken to a local hospital in stable condition.
Several witnesses said they were shocked and horrified at Herrera’s attempt at the woman, as they watched him attack her suddenly and then stab her dog to death.
Herrera was booked into the county jail early Wednesday on a charge of attempted murder and was ordered held on $ 1 million bail.
