Two children, ages seven and 12, who allegedly stabbed an elderly woman Saturday afternoon were taken into custody at Harris County Jail in Texas.
The 12-year-old suspect was charged with aggravated assault after he and his 7-year-old accomplice allegedly stabbed a 59-year-old victim around 4:30 p.m., KHOU 11 reported.
Update to yesterday’s stabbing scene on April Valley Ct: the victim remains hospitalized in critical condition.
An Aggravated Assault charge was filed on the 12-yr-old, he’s in the custody of Harris County Juvenile.
7-yr-old is not culpable by law.
— Ed Gonzalez (@SheriffEd_HCSO) March 24, 2024
The 7-year-old avoided charges because he “is not culpable by law,” Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said, according to the outlet.
The two children reportedly ended up committing the alleged stabbing after they revisited the victim’s home after an earlier confrontation, the sheriff’s office said. The victim was caught on surveillance video arguing with two young boys on bicycles. In the video, a neighbor appears to tell the children to leave the woman alone, KHOU 11 reported.
Footage showed the two boys return to the victim’s home wearing surgical gloves. Both children fled the scene after the boy wearing a red hoodie charged at the elderly woman, according to the outlet. The victim’s family arrived at the scene soon after, and it was her brother who called police, sheriff’s investigator Sergio Torres said. (RELATED: Video Shows Mom Chase Alleged Kidnapper After He Grabs, Runs Off With Teenage Daughter)
The elderly woman was transported to the hospital in serious condition, the outlet reported. From there, the victim was taken via Life Flight to a different hospital, Gonzalez said. The victim reportedly had a history of mental issues.
“If [the kids] have the ability to go and do that to an older woman who clearly has mental issues, and even our neighbor tells them like, hey leave her alone, she has something, now’s it’s a concern,” Maddy Monsalve, a longtime neighbor of the victim, told KHOU 11.