Crime & Safety

Police: Arlington Man Confronts Vandals, Ends Up in Jail

Spokesman: Individual should have called police.

An Arlington homeowner who confronted three vandals in his neighborhood early Friday was jailed after allegedly stabbing one in the face with a kitchen knife.

Mauricio Canales, 27, has been arrested and charged with malicious wounding, according to the Arlington County Police Department.

Shortly before 2 a.m. Friday, three men in their mid-20s reportedly were walking down North Irving Street vandalizing homes, according to police.

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The men were taking chairs, tables, plants and other items off of front porches and smashing them in the middle of the street, police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck said.

Police have not identified the vandals, but Sternbeck did say they had been drinking alcohol.

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Canales, who also had been drinking, confronted the three individuals in front of his home in the 800 block of North Irving, Sternbeck said.

Investigators have received conflicting accounts as to whether one of the vandals threw a punch at Canales, Sternbeck said.

Regardless, Canales went back inside to retrieve what police described only as "a large kitchen knife." He confronted them a second time.

A fight ensued, during which Canales allegedly stabbed one of the vandals below the jaw, causing a 5-inch cut under his chin that required "numerous" stitches, Sternbeck said.

Canales stabbed that person again in the arm and hand, which also required stitches, Sternbeck said.

The three vandals ran away, and eventually sought medical attention at the Ballston Fire Station.

Police arrived to confront Canales, and found the man sitting on his front steps with blood on his white T-shirt, Sternbeck said. The smashed property and the kitchen knife were still lying in the street.

The incident remains under investigation.

"It doesn't matter whether he was defending his property or not," Sternbeck said. "He confronted them, decided to go back into the house and grab a kitchen knife, and come out and stab a dude in the face.

He continued: "Call it what it is. We tell the public always: Please, call police if you're witnessing crimes occurring, and do not take it into your own hands. And you can see what some of the results can be."


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