Stranger Held Stabbed Victim's Hand

A 23-year-old Johns Hopkins research assistant was fatally stabbed Sunday night in Charles Village during an apparent robbery, two days before the victim's birthday, according to city police.

Officers responded to a call of an attack at about 11:30 p.m. in the 2600 block of St. Paul St. and found the man in the road, suffering from stab wounds all over his body.

A man, who would not give his name, said he witnessed the attack and ran outside to comfort the victim. He was in his home ironing when he saw three people who appeared to be fighting, then heard a scream. He ran outside and saw the victim lying on his stomach in the gutter, then called 911.
"I made it back and held his hand, and I told him that everything was going to be OK," the man said. "He said, 'Help me,' and then I held his hand until he expired. I didn't want him to be alone.

"Nobody wants to die alone."

Police said the victim was taken to Johns Hopkins Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Police have not identified the man, pending notification of kin.

About 8:30 a.m. Monday, a police SWAT team executed a raid in the 2700 block of Maryland Ave. and took away a man and a woman in plastic handcuffs. Detectives at the scene would not comment about whether they were considered suspects, but a spokesman confirmed that the raid was connected to the homicide investigation.

The stabbing was the second fatal attack in the city Sunday night. At about 7 p.m., officers responded to a call for shots fired in the 1500 block of Lanhorne Court in East Baltimore and found a 30-year-old man sitting in a vehicle, suffering from a gunshot wound to the head, according to police. Medical crews pronounced the man dead at the scene. Police were waiting to identify the man, pending notification of kin.

Police had no suspects and had not determined a motive in that incident.

In two other unrelated incidents Sunday night, two men suffered nonfatal gunshot wounds.

A 23-year-old man was shot in the left thigh at about 10:15 p.m. in the 5200 block of Wilton Heights Ave. in Northwest Baltimore, according to police. The victim was taken by a friend to an area hospital. The victim told police that he was outside his home when an unidentified man attempted to rob him. Police said the victim was trying to run away when he was shot.

Later in the night, an unidentified man was shot in the leg in the 1500 block of Baker Ave. in West Baltimore, according to police. The man was taken to an area hospital at about 1:30 a.m., and his condition was unknown.
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