Nurse Stabbed, Police Searching For Suspect

Police are searching for a man that critically injured a male nurse on Monday evening at Mission Community Hospital in Panorama City, California. Police were called to the scene for an assault with a deadly weapon around 6:50 pm on Monday, September 19th. Upon arrival at the hospital, officers found a 49-year-old nurse with multiple stab wounds in the neck.

Officer Annie Hernandez, a Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) spokesperson said the nurse was coming in to work and was confronted by the attacker. The suspect took out a knife and stabbed the nurse. As the suspect removed the knife from the victim’s neck, he also slashed the nurse’s right hand.

Craig Garner, a hospital spokesperson, said “The employee was transferred in stable condition to another facility.” Mission Community Hospital is not a trauma facility so the patient was transferred to a larger facility more equipped to handle stab wounds. 

Mission Community Hospital issued a statement following the incident, which read: 

"At approximately 7:00 p.m. today, a Mission Community Hospital employee was assaulted by an unknown individual. The employee was transferred in stable condition to another facility. The Los Angeles Police Department remains on site, continuing its investigation into the incident after completing its search to ensure the safety of the hospital campus. The Mission Community Hospital Family will continue to monitor the condition of its employee."

"Everybody jumped in, brought him inside and took him someplace to take care of him," said Dr. James Higgins, a cardiologist at the hospital. "It's just scary, it's a really sad thing that it's gonna happen at a place where you're really trying to help people and save them. Instead, it's almost like the opposite. ... Just shows you sometimes what's going on in the world."

Police stayed on the scene after the incident on Monday evening and were seen patrolling the hospital and surrounding area on Tuesday. The suspect is still at large and according to police is described “as a Latino male, possibly 40 to 50 years old; 5 feet, 7 inches tall, about 140 pounds; and wearing a hoodie, shirt, hat and backpack, all in black,” Hernandez said.

Anyone with information was asked to call the LAPD at 877-527-3247.  

Anonymous tips can be called in to Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477 or submitted online at lacrimestoppers.org.