The homeless man accused of a random stabbing an elderly woman in the neck as she innocently walked on a Downtown LA street was on parole for killing another man.
Kenneth Gibson, 39, pled not guilty to attempted murder of Riffat Sultana Kazmi, 70, on Tuesday morning.
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman described the “senseless” attack on Kazmi as a “heinous crime” that left her in a critical condition in hospital.
“This was a random and vicious attack on an innocent woman who was doing nothing wrong,” he added in a statement.
Gibson was previously identified in a law enforcement bulletin as a suspect in the May 23 killing of a homeless man in Downtown encampment on the Eighth Street on-ramp to the 110 Freeway, according to law enforcement sources.
The bulletin also stated that Gibson had an outstanding parole warrant.
The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner identified the victim in the homeless encampment as Byron Fuentes, 48, according to a report from CBS-LA.
Fuentes was killed by blunt-force head trauma, according to medical records.
Fuentes’ family said he became homeless because of a drug addiction, CBS LA reports.
“Byron was a man full of compassion,” Fuentes’ family wrote in a statement, according to CBS LA. “His heart was pure and full of love.”
Gibson has an extensive rap sheet, according to court records.
His criminal history includes nine felony convictions since 2014, including charges for assault with a deadly weapon, burglary, robbery, narcotics and weapons.
Gibson now faces one count of willful, deliberate and premeditated attempted murder for allegedly stabbing Kazmi next to Grand Hope Park, which is less than a half-mile away from where police found Fuentes’ body almost a year before.
He pled not guilty to the charge Friday in a hearing before Judge Theresa McGonigle at the Foltz Criminal Justice Center, who approved prosecutors’ request for bail to be set at $2,750,000.
Gibson is facing a total of five charges in the stabbing, including that he used a deadly and dangerous weapon in the commission of the crime.
Another hearing was scheduled for April 16.
According to police, Gibson on Tuesday made an unprovoked attack on Kazmi on Hope Street near Olympic Boulevard around 10:15 a.m.
The victim, who is described in court documents as at least 70 years old, was walking along the street as Gibson passed in the other direction.
Suddenly, he turned and stabbed Kazmi without warning, cops said.
Kazmi was taken to the hospital and underwent surgery Tuesday afternoon.
Police said she was in critical condition.
A physician’s assistant, who happened to be nearby at the time of the attack, hurried over and applied pressure to Kazmi’s neck to stop the bleeding, which “assisted in saving the victim’s life,” said LAPD Central Division Lt. James Mankey.
Hochman said Gibson’s alleged stabbing stuck fear into the heart of the city.
“This kind of violence doesn’t just hurt the victim; it shakes our entire community,” said Hochman. “Everyone should feel safe walking the streets of Los Angeles.”
Gibson appeared in yellow jail garb during Friday’s hearing.
He is being held in custody awaiting trial.
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