Sunbury man faces attempted homicide charges after stabbing

Apr. 16—SUNBURY — A Sunbury resident faces felony attempted homicide charges after the 32-year-old man stabbed another man in the throat and bit his face during a personal dispute and fight early Sunday morning.

Jose Aguilar-Velazquez, of North Sixth Street, is incarcerated at the Northumberland County Jail, where he is awaiting an arraignment on the felony charge of attempted homicide after the 3:15 a.m. stabbing that left the victim in critical condition at Geisinger Medical Center in Danville, according to city police.

According to a criminal complaint, police were dispatched to an apartment along North 11th Street for a disturbance after a neighbor called 911, reporting he was concerned for the man living inside the home.

The caller was advised to not go inside the home and to not touch anything after he reported seeing blood and a knife on the floor, police said.

When officers arrived, they met with the 37-year-old victim before he was transported to Geisinger.

The man, whose name is being withheld because of the nature of the case, was reported in critical condition Sunday night.

Police said the victim met Aguilar-Velazquez at a bar and the two went back to the victim's apartment.

Once inside, the victim told police that Aguilar-Velazquez attempted to do inappropriate things to him and when he declined, Aguilar-Velazquez grabbed a knife and stabbed him, according to court documents.

While searching for the suspect, officers received a phone call from a man who told police Aguilar-Velazquez was outside his home covered in blood and screaming, "I killed man, I need to pay for my crime," according to court documents.

Officers obtained a search warrant from Sunbury District Judge Mike Toomey before a state police forensic unit team arrived to gather evidence at the apartment, police said.

Police took Aguilar-Velazquez into custody and transported him to Geisinger Medical Center, where he was medically cleared, police said.

Aguilar-Velazquez, who Sunbury Police Chief Brad Hare said was an undocumented immigrant, was brought back to the Sunbury police station.

Hare said police made contact with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, who confirmed Aguilar-Velazquez was undocumented.

Officer Trey Kurtz conducted an interview with Aguilar-Velazquez, who said he was walking in Sunbury when the victim made contact with him, asking him to return to his apartment with him for a beer, according to court documents.

Aguilar-Velazquez told police that during their encounter, the victim slapped him in the face, and that made Aguilar-Velazquez angry. He then began to choke the victim, according to court documents.

As the struggle progressed, Aguilar-Velazquez told police, he grabbed a knife in the kitchen and stabbed the man in the throat, police wrote in court papers.

Before Aguilar-Velazquez left the apartment, he allegedly stabbed the man several times and bit his face, court documents state.

Aguilar-Velazquez also faces a felony charge of aggravated assault and will be arraigned by Magistrate Toomey on Monday.

Police are still investigating the incident. Police Chief Hare emphasized that this was an isolated incident involving these two individuals, and there is no danger to the public.