DA: Man sentenced after 2022 stabbing at a Merced Target
MERCED COUNTY, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – A 62-year-old man has been sentenced to 38 years to life in prison for stabbing a man at a Target parking lot in Merced, the Merced County District Attorney’s Office announced.
Man arrested after attempted homicide in Merced, police say
On Dec. 15, 2022, the DA says 62-year-old Steven Perez was riding his tricycle in the parking lot of a Target in Merced when a truck owner told Perez to get away from his vehicle. Perez went inside Target and bought a paring knife along with a bottle of wine. Perez then went back outside and stabbed the truck owner three times through the driver’s side window.
While the victim was rushed to the hospital for treatment, officials say Perez drove his tricycle to a nearby apartment complex where he altered his appearance by shaving off his mustache and beard and changing his clothes. He was eventually arrested by officers with the Merced Police Department.
During the trial, the DA says the victim testified about his injuries, and he still suffers lasting effects in his arm and abdomen where he was stabbed. Perez was sentenced on April 10 at the Merced County Superior Court, and he was found guilty of assault with a deadly weapon on Feb. 21. The jury also found true an enhancement for great bodily injury.
