CRANSTON STABBING SHOCKER: FUGITIVE NEIGHBOR NABBED IN MASS. GARAGE HIDEOUT!
High-Tech Plate Readers Track Down Suspect After Brutal Parking Lot Ambush
Cranston, R.I.— A accused knife-wielding fugitive who left a man fighting for his life in a Cranston apartment parking lot has finally been cornered—busted inside a Massachusetts garage after a six-day, multi-state manhunt.
David Mendez, 55, of Cranston, was slapped in cuffs without incident at 9:30 a.m. Thursday morning in New Bedford, Mass., bringing a dramatic end to a relentless pursuit led by Rhode Island and Massachusetts State Police fugitive task forces alongside the U.S. Marshals Service. Investigators also tracked down and impounded his getaway ride at a separate New Bedford address.
The bloody ambush unfolded on November 6 in the parking lot at 1369 Park Avenue, where a 46-year-old man was savagely stabbed multiple times in the torso and arm. First responders raced to the scene and used tactical medical gear to stanch the gushing wounds—a life-saving move that Cranston Police Chief Col. Michael J. Winquist said kept the victim alive.
Initially clinging to life in critical condition, the victim has since stabilized in the hospital. Police revealed the two men knew each other prior to the attack, though detectives are still digging into what sparked the vicious grudge.
Despite fleeing across state lines, Mendez couldn’t outrun high-tech police work. Within minutes of the bloodshed, a brave witness gave detectives a physical description and a partial plate for the suspect’s car. Cops plugged the clues into Cranston’s Flock Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) network, instantly flagging a matching vehicle near the scene—a car Mendez had previously been pulled over driving.
“He is fortunate to have survived such a brutal attack,” Col. Winquist said, praising the quick-thinking witness, the life-saving patrol officers, and the multi-agency dragnet that brought Mendez down.
Mendez faces arraignment in New Bedford District Court as a Fugitive from Justice before being hauled back to Rhode Island to face a Felony Assault charge.
