Second stabbing on a Seattle bus in under a week

According to Seattle Police, around 7:45 pm, patrol officers responded to reports of a stabbing and found the victim collapsing in front of a police car, suffering from multiple stab wounds. Officers immediately rendered emergency medical aid until Seattle Fire Department personnel arrived and took over care. The man was transported to Harborview Medical Center in stable condition, though officials described his injuries as life-threatening.

Investigators determined that the violence followed a physical altercation between two men on the bus. The suspect fled before officers arrived, but police tracked him down during an extensive search of the area.

A trail of blood led officers to a nearby apartment building in the 100 block of Dexter Avenue North. Police followed it into the common areas and up to a sixth-floor hallway. While still searching, officers received a 911 call from a man requesting medical attention, claiming he had been attacked on a bus. They quickly located him on the sixth floor and arrested him without incident. The 35-year-old suspect is expected to be booked into King County Jail for investigation of assault.

The latest stabbing comes just days after a 63-year-old man was rushed to the hospital Sunday evening after being stabbed on a bus, according to the King County Sheriff’s Office. The suspect fled before law enforcement arrived, but the victim is expected to survive.

Transit violence has also made national headlines. Last month in Charlotte, North Carolina, a Ukrainian woman who fled her home country due to the ongoing war was stabbed to death aboard a light rail train. Video captured the suspect, 34-year-old Decarlos Brown Jr., suddenly stabbing Iryna “Ira” Zarutska in the neck multiple times before walking away with blood dripping from the knife and his hands. Brown has been charged with first-degree murder.

Seattle itself has grappled with repeated acts of violence on its transit system. In December, a homeless man was arrested for fatally stabbing a Metro bus driver. Police said 53-year-old Richard Sitzlack pepper-sprayed 59-year-old driver Shawn Yim before stabbing him outside the bus. That same month, the city announced it would shut down several bus stops due to rising crime.

According to data released earlier this year, King County Metro reported five assaults on workers in the first five months of 2025, down from 2024, but 16 assaults on passengers, an increase from the previous year. Sound Transit reported 61 assaults on workers, 13 assaults on passengers resulting in injury, and 15 weapons threats over the same period.