RCMP in Wetaskiwin say two suspects involved in a stabbing tried to escape police and ended up driving into the side of a brick building.
The whole incident began early Thursday morning, at about 12:30 a.m., when RCMP were called about a stabbing in an apartment building in south Wetaskiwin.
A 32-year-old man was found with two stab wounds in his back.
When officers arrived, they were told the two suspects were in a vehicle.
RCMP said the pair drove away, hitting a parked police vehicle and another parked vehicle.
“We had members who had to take effort to get out of the way of the vehicle or they could have been hit,” Const. Holly Porterfield said.
“They had to jump behind other vehicles in order to at least get some cover as the vehicle came towards them.”
Police said the incident ended when the suspects drove their vehicle into the side of a business near 55 Street and 39 Avenue. The driver and the passenger were taken to hospital for injuries they suffered in the crash.
“No effort to stop even as it drove toward the building,” Porterfield said.
A witness told he saw a BMW with two men inside being chased by RCMP vehicles at around midnight.
“He hit the back end of my van, then he swerved out this way right at six RCMP officers parked here with guns drawn at him,” Prestian Teichroeb said.
“They almost took out like six cops,” Jessica Rattlesnake added. “The cops had to jump over the vehicles.”
The man driving, a 21 year old from Maskwacis, was later released from hospital and remained in police custody Thursday afternoon.
The passenger, a 23 year old from Maskwacis, remained in hospital in Edmonton in stable condition.
The stabbing victim — William Buffalo — was taken to hospital in Edmonton where he was in stable condition Thursday.
“The last thing I remember is saying that I thought I was going to die,” Buffalo told Global News. “I thought I was going to bleed to death.”
Buffalo said the suspects didn’t say anything to him.
“They just came up and shanked me in the back a couple times,” he said.
“When I woke up this morning, I thought I was dead.”
Investigators continue to look into this case but say the victim and the accused don’t know each other.
Charges have not been laid yet.
“This incident could have resulted in additional injuries to the public and our officers,” RCMP Insp. Keith Durance said. “Thankfully, no one else was injured.”
— With files from Kent Morrison, Slav Kornik