South Lake Tahoe, CA (July 20, 2013) – At around 3:30am this morning, Saturday, July 20th, 2013, South Lake Tahoe Fire Department officials requested police respond to Pioneer Trail, in the area of the Americana Village Suites. This is a residential complex at 3845 Pioneer Trail. Fire officials were already en-route to an unrelated medical emergency when someone in this area flagged them down. It was reported to them that a man was lying on the ground at the side of Pioneer Trail, near the Americana complex, and a small crowd of people were standing in the general area of the victim. Fire officials requested immediate police response to investigate, and continued to their previous priority emergency call.

When the police arrived the victim was already gone from the scene. Others who remained explained to the first responding officer that the victim had been stabbed during a fight, and had been bleeding profusely. The victim was being transported by family members to the hospital. Soon afterward police learned that the victim had been delivered to the emergency room of Barton Memorial Hospital in South Lake Tahoe. Medical officials confirmed the 28-year-old male victim had been stabbed in the torso area and died despite resuscitation efforts.

Currently the suspect is unidentified, and at large. Preliminary investigation throughout the day has developed an initial understanding of what has occurred, but much information remains to be discovered. Because the suspect is still at large and unidentified, some information of an evidentiary nature is intentionally being withheld from this news release. Nevertheless the public should be aware that this does not appear to be a random act of violence and the police have no indication that the public in general is at any specific risk.

Preliminary information indicates the suspect is a White Male Adult, in his early 20’s. The suspect was walking westbound on Pioneer Trail when he encountered a group of approximately three men conversing together in the area of the Americana Village. The victim was one of the men in this company. A confrontation occurred between the suspect and this group of men, which turned into a physical fight. During the fight, the suspect used an edged weapon to stab the victim in the side. The suspect was able to flee from the area without being identified. There is no information to suggest this event was gang related.

The victim is a resident of South Lake Tahoe, but is not being identified prior to the El Dorado County Sheriff’s / Coroner notifying next of kin. Investigators have spent the day canvassing the neighborhood and questioning witnesses and neighbors. We are asking for the public’s assistance to report anything they may have seen or heard, or any information they may have come by through other means, which may be related to this matter and which may help the police identify the suspect.

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