Davis stabbings update: ‘Biological evidence’ retrieved at crime scenes being analyzed

Rosalio Ahumada
·2 min read

Investigators have collected “biological evidence” from each crime scene and were analyzing the material to determine potential sources as detectives continued their investigation of three “brutal” stabbings in Davis.

The Davis Police Department released an update on the investigation Wednesday afternoon. Police said investigators did not yet have any conclusions regarding the source of the biological evidence. The department did not indicate what type of biological evidence was found at the three crime scenes.

Two men — a well known community member and a UC Davis student — were killed in separate stabbings at Davis parks late last week. The third victim in the series of attacks was a woman living in a homeless encampment in downtown Davis. She was critically wounded but survived.

Volunteer Yolo County Search and Rescue crews continued scouring areas throughout the city, searching for any possible evidence, police said.

A memorial set up at the compassion bench in Davis on Monday, May 1, 2023, remembers David Henry Breaux, 50, who was found stabbed to death Thursday in Central Park.
A memorial set up at the compassion bench in Davis on Monday, May 1, 2023, remembers David Henry Breaux, 50, who was found stabbed to death Thursday in Central Park.

Authorities were holding off on providing an artist’s sketch of a suspect based on eyewitnesses — in large part because one witness in the attack on the UC Davis student had “low confidence it accurately depicted the suspect.” Other witnesses who encountered the assailant at the third attack “were unable to provide the finer details to allow for an accurate depiction of the suspect to be produced.”

“A sketch that illustrates a misleading representation of a suspect could lead to the false apprehension of an innocent person,” the department said.

A cyclist rides past a memorial of flowers on Wednesday, May 3, 2023, marking the location that Karim Abou Najm, a graduating senior at UC Davis, was stabbed Saturday in Sycamore Park in Davis. It was the second of three stabbings - two fatal - in the city in less than a week.
A cyclist rides past a memorial of flowers on Wednesday, May 3, 2023, marking the location that Karim Abou Najm, a graduating senior at UC Davis, was stabbed Saturday in Sycamore Park in Davis. It was the second of three stabbings - two fatal - in the city in less than a week.

Among the biggest struggles for detectives is the dearth of surveillance videos that could yield clues in the moments leading to or immediately after the attacks at the parks and homeless encampment.

Police also addressed a flood of false information and imagery being circulated on social media and cautioned the public to rely on official sources to help law enforcement focus on the best leads toward apprehending a suspect.

“We would like to remind the community that the best sources for getting accurate information regarding the investigation are from official sources such as the Davis Police Department, city Facebook pages, or reliable news sources.”