An alleged stabbing suspect is in custody following an investigation by the Hamlet Police Department.
Hamlet Police officers were called to a home in the 500 block of West Davis Street in the early morning hours on Saturday, Aug. 10 after reportedly receiving information about a possible stabbing incident. When they arrived, police say they found a victim with a wound that required medical attention and was transported by ambulance to Memorial Hospital in South Bend.
The suspect allegedly fled the scene before emergency personnel arrived. Further investigation found that the suspect had two children with him which led to the issuance of an AMBER Alert, according to the report.
Police say once the notice was issued, an officer with the Plymouth Police Department located the suspect’s vehicle but the suspect was unable to be found. The report indicates that it wasn’t too long after that when 28-year-old Francisco Javier Mendez turned himself into the Marshall County Sheriff’s Department along with the safe return of the children. They are currently in the care of immediate family.
Mendez faces preliminary charges of battery with a deadly weapon, criminal confinement, battery resulting in bodily injury, and intimidation. Formal charges are pending with the prosecutor’s office.
The Hamlet Police Department was assisted by the Starke County Sheriff’s Department, Marshall County Sheriff’s Department, Plymouth Police Department, Indiana State Police, and the FBI.
All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
