Knifeman follows woman home in a panda mask and stabs her babysitter say police
Harrowing video appears to show suspect Joshua Cates attacking woman outside her home in Oregon
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A knifeman wearing a sinister panda mask followed a woman home and stabbed her babysitter, police say.
Harrowing video captured the incident outside the unidentified woman’s home in Eugene, Oregon, on Friday evening.
Police said suspect Joshua William Cates, who was wearing a bloody Halloween mask, had followed the woman in her car before attacking her when she parked and propped the door open to get out.
Home surveillance footage shows the pair struggling on the ground by the car before the woman’s babysitter, an unnamed 45-year-old man, came out to help her.
The babysitter was pulling Mr Cates off of the woman when he was stabbed, police said. The wound was not life-threatening.
Mr Cates fled the scene, leaving behind his mask. The babysitter and a neighbour attempted to follow him before returning home when they noticed the stab wound.
Mr Cates, 31, was apprehended hours later in the backseat of an acquaintance’s car. Police said he was identified by evidence left at the scene of the assault.
He was arrested and booked into Lane County Jail on charges of first-degree robbery, second-degree assault and coercion, KEZI reported.
It is not known whether Mr Cates has been assigned a lawyer or given an opportunity to enter a plea.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments