Salem, Oregon mass stabbing at Union Gospel Mission (UGM) homeless shelter for men leaves 11 injured and suspect detained. No known motive.
A mass stabbing at a Salem, Oregon, downtown homeless shelter has led to 11 people being injured and the alleged suspect being taken in custody, Sunday night.
The episode which took place at the Union Gospel Mission on Commerce st just on 7.15 p.m, led to eleven individuals with various degrees of injuries being taken to hospital.
The victims were described in emergency radio traffic as being inside the shelter, in front of the business and across the street.
Mass Stabbing Attack
SALEM, OREGON — Eleven people were stabbed Sunday evening at a men’s shelter in Salem NO UPDATE ON VICTIMS CONDITION. The Black male suspect is in custody.
— At about 7:15 p.m., Salem police officers responded to a report that multiple people… pic.twitter.com/0L0oTW3eH5
— MəanL¡LMə♡₩ (@MeanLILMeoW) June 2, 2025
BREAKING: At least 11 people stabbed at a homeless men’s shelter in Salem, Oregon.
Raw video shows the scene outside Salem UGM after this mass stabbing; suspect in custody.
Tons of illegal aliens have occupied this shelter.
Oregon is a proud sanctuary state. pic.twitter.com/xLFVQBDa5H
— Dapper Detective (@Dapper_Det) June 2, 2025
UGM homeless shelter stabbing suspect apprehended
One victim was also described as ‘bleeding heavily from the neck,’ according to the Statesman Journal.
Witness Malik Law said he watched in horror as the man stabbed at least seven people.
‘Everybody was basically trying to move out of his way,’ Law told the Statesman Journal. ‘He started attacking them.’
Video posted online appeared to show officers apprehending a black man lying facedown on the sidewalk amid commotion as he screamed.
Dan Mills, 62, who lives at the shelter, said he was working at the front desk when the suspect entered for a second night at the facility when he started brawling just as he was supposed to hand his belongings over to staff.
Other employees then tried to get the man to leave, as the building was closed to the public at the time, when the man allegedly started stabbing people.
‘I just heard a scream,’ Mills said.
‘I was standing right at the front desk. I was probably no more than 10 feet away and he stabbed one of the staff members.’
Meanwhile, Bobby Epperly, 48, said he was upstairs and saw the man outside of the building, screaming at traffic while holding a knife.
‘Something … set him off, and he evidently had a knife in his bag,’ Union Gospel Mission’s Executive Director Craig Smith told NBC News.
Salem Police in a release on X told of officers taking the suspect into custody; with police declining to release the man’s name or what charges he now faced.
‘This is a very fresh incident, and detectives are gathering the facts,’ Angela Hedrick, a public information officer for the Salem Police Department saying in a statement.
Police closed off Commercial at D Street, saying a detour is in place that sends traffic west to Front Street.
No known motive was immediately known.
UGM is a faith-based organization on the front lines of the homelessness crisis. Upwards of 150 homeless men seek refuge at the mission each night and have access to support services, including food, shelter, clothing, showers, case management and counseling.
The UGM is across the street from Salem Police headquarters.
There UGM includes space for sleeping, ranging from dorm-style shelters to transitional housing and apartment-style living for those moving through UGM’s recovery program.
The mission also has showers available even for those not staying at the shelter, 24-hour bathroom access, community rooms, career training, a computer education center, GED program, on-site health clinic and access to mental health services.
