One woman died and another was injured after a man stabbed them both in front of a police officer Thursday morning in downtown Pittsburgh.
A man walked around an officer, who was checking on a woman sleeping at a bus stop, and stabbed the woman in front of the officer, according to Pittsburgh Police Chief Scott Schubert. After the man stabbed the woman the officer was talking to, he turned and stabbed another woman, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported.
One woman was stabbed in the neck and died at the hospital. The other woman sustained minor injuries. The identity of the suspect and the two victims has not been released yet, according to the Post-Gazette.
The officer immediately put the suspect in custody and helped the first woman who was stabbed, Commander Victor Joseph, head of violent crime, said.
“We do not have a motive right now on why this crime took place,” Commander Joseph said. “[I]t seems, by all accounts, a random act of violence.” (RELATED: Man Stabbed By Woman For Allegedly Masturbating On NYC Subway)
A video was taken by a witness of the incident that shows a woman in a hijab standing behind the police officer and another woman sitting at the bus stop. Nick Emery, the witness who took the video, said the woman sitting at the bus stop looked seriously injured.
The officer tried to help the victim stabbed in the neck by putting his finger in the wound to stop the bleeding, according to Commander Joseph. However, Ron Sicilia, a witness at the scene, told the Post-Gazette that the woman was “bleeding profusely.”
The man has been taken into custody and will face charges.