Kentucky man, Esteban Portugues arrested after chasing three children playing at a park with a machete, striking a nine year old boy and injuring him.
A Kentucky man is set to appear in court on Monday after allegedly stabbing a 9 year old with a machete.
The Courier Journal reports Esteban Portugues, 35, arrested on Friday after allegedly chasing three children from a Covington park and then stabbing a 9-year-old boy who fell behind.
The child’s family says the 9 year old boy was playing basketball with two other children, aged 13 and 16, Friday night. Covington police say Portugues, armed with a machete, and two other men armed with knives then entered the park.
Police say the children tried to flee, but the ‘9-year-old was not able to keep up with the older juveniles.’ The child was stabbed in the back of his right shoulder, and police described the wound as not life threatening.
Police offered no motive as to why Portugues set on the three boys.
Aunt of Esteban Portugues 9 year old victim: ‘…he was just crying his eyes out for his mom.’
Told Angel Hayward, the aunt of the victim via kfvs, ‘My heart just like completely stopped. This is a 9-year-old baby.’
Adding, ‘He was sitting in the ground, on the ground in the grass and his shirt was bloody and he was just crying his eyes out for his mom.’
Police spokesman Brian Valenti says the attack may have started over the children playing basketball, but that hasn’t been substantiated.
Witnesses say two other men had accompanied Portugues on the night of the attack- police have declined to charge those two men- understood to live feet away from the park where the attack took place.
Following his arrest, Portugues was taken to the Kenton County Detention Center and charged with second degree assault. Bond was placed at $10K.
Family have since demanded that charges against Portugues be upgraded. No additional charges are expected to be filed as Portugues will be arraigned in Kenton County court at Monday morning, at 8:30 a.m.
