Felony charges may be filed Wednesday against a New Jersey man suspected of stabbing and critically wounding a Murrieta resident during an altercation outside an apartment complex.
Gekeith McDuffie, 37, of Jersey City was arrested and booked into the Byrd Detention Center Thursday night on suspicion of attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon. McDuffie is being held in lieu of $1 million bail.
Murrieta Police Department detectives were expected to submit the case to the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office Monday for review. The suspect’s speedy arraignment window closes Wednesday.
According to police Capt. Spencer Parker, at 10:30 p.m. Thursday, patrol officers were alerted that a knife-wielding man was chasing another man during a fight outside the Waterstone Apartments at 24850 Hancock Ave.
Before officers arrived, the victim, identified only as a local man, was stabbed, Parker said.
The suspect was ultimately identified as McDuffie.
The captain said an unknown party, possibly a passer-by, loaded the victim into his vehicle and drove him to the nearest hospital emergency room, dropped him there and left.
Officers deployed a remote-controlled drone to scour the area where the alleged attack occurred and soon identified the man described by 911 callers as the suspect, according to Parker.
He said that person, McDuffie, was spotted near the north driveway of the apartment complex, and patrol units were directed to the location, culminating in his uneventful arrest.
The wounded man remained hospitalized Monday in serious condition.
“Detectives continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the altercation and are seeking any cell phone, surveillance or dash camera footage that may have captured the incident or the movements of those involved before or after the stabbing,” Parker said.
The party who transported the victim to the hospital has yet to be identified.
“Detectives believe this individual may have important information regarding the circumstances surrounding the incident,” Parker said.
Anyone with information was asked to contact detectives at 951-970-8965.