(Updated at 5:45 p.m. on 4/9/12) A man has been arrested after a bizarre, alleged attack on a homeless man in Cherrydale on Sunday.
Police originally received a call around 2:00 a.m. for a fight in progress in the 2000 block of N. Kenmore Street, according to Arlington County Police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck.
The victim, a homeless man who had been living in his car in the neighborhood for the past five years, said an adult Asian male had jumped on his car and started attacking him. During the struggle, the suspect — who was drunk — was able to get into the driver’s seat of the car and hit the victim with the vehicle, according to Sternbeck. The suspect then started to drive off but wrecked the car 100 feet away. Undeterred, the suspect ran back at the victim to continue assaulting him.
At that point, Sternbeck said, the victim pulled out a pocket knife and stabbed his attacker in the chest. The suspect ran off and, after arriving at the scene of the fight, police called in a helicopter to search for him. The suspect was not initially located by police but, later, a woman called police to report her boyfriend missing. The boyfriend matched the description of the suspect, and police were then able to locate the suspect in his residence, suffering from a serious chest wound, according to Sternbeck.
The suspect, identified by police as 24-year-old Andrew Lee of North Carolina, was taken to a local hospital for treatment. After an investigation, Lee was charged Monday with attempted malicious wounding and unauthorized use of a vehicle. He’s currently being held without bond at the Arlington County jail. The motive for the attack is unknown at this time, Sternbeck said.
The victim did not require transport to the hospital, according to Sternbeck.
Arlington County Police also issued the following crime report item about the incident:
On April 8 at 2 am, a homeless man was sleeping in his car when a drunk subject began jumping on his vehicle. The victim attempted to drive away but the subject blocked the road. The victim exited his vehicle and a physical altercation ensued, causing both men to fall into a roadside ditch. The suspect was able to climb back to the road and attempted to flee the scene in the victims vehicle, striking him with the vehicle and crashing a short distance away. They began to fight once again and the victim pulled out a pocket knife and stabbed the suspect in his chest. The suspect fled the scene on foot and was located at his residence a short time later. He was transported to an area hospital for treatment. The investigation is ongoing.