Bystanders rush to restrain man attacking person with a knife, California cops say

A 37-year-old was arrested in the stabbing of a person in California after bystanders restrained him, police said.

On June 23, Santa Rosa officers responded after getting a call that a person had been stabbed, according to a Facebook post by the police department.

Officers arrived and gave the victim, whom police didn’t identify, medical aid before they were taken to the Memorial Hospital with serious injuries, officers said.

After investigating, police learned a man, later identified as Robert Dean, of New Mexico, came up behind the victim and stabbed him with a pocketknife in an unprovoked attack, officers said.

Police didn’t specify if the two knew each other.

During the attack, bystanders restrained Dean and were able to disarm him, officers said.

He was arrested and booked into the Sonoma County correctional facility on a charge of attempted murder, officers said.

Santa Rosa is about a 60-mile drive northwest from San Francisco.

This story was originally published June 25, 2025 at 12:48 PM with the headline "Bystanders rush to restrain man attacking person with a knife, California cops say."