Two people were rushed to a New Jersey hospital after a stabbing incident on a popular beach in the middle of the Labor Day holiday.
The Point Pleasant Beach mayor says two men were stabbed on Monday. Authorities later identified them as Alex Galdamez, 22, and William Mazariegogo, 18, both of West Haverstraw, New York. Witnesses described seeing two groups of people arguing for about 15 minutes before punches were thrown and someone pulled out a knife.
Several witnesses who were enjoying a sunny beach day say the fight appeared to be over a woman, and one law enforcement source confirmed what they saw.
"It sounded like the one guy was accusing another guy of hitting on a girl," one witness said.
Prosecutors said Monday a 17-year-old boy from Newark is now under arrest and facing two counts of attempted murder in relation to the attack.
“Our collaborative investigation revealed that this juvenile was responsible for both stabbings. We did have two individuals in custody last night, but only one of them is responsible for both stabbings. Both victims are in serious but stable condition this morning,” Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer said in a statement.
As the knife-wielder ran off the beach, one man briefly chased after him before the suspect hopped over a fence.
There were no outstanding threats to the public, the mayor said.
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Ocean County Sheriff Mike Mastronardy told NBC New York one victim was stabbed in the chest, the other in the hand. Their injuries are serious but they're expected to be OK, authorities said.
