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Man charged with attempted murder in seemingly random stabbing of fellow Microsoft employee

The victim told police he did not know the suspect, nor did the two work in the same building or workgroup.

REDMOND, Wash. — A Microsoft employee was charged with attempted murder after he allegedly stabbed another employee over a dozen times, seemingly at random. 

The victim told police he did not know the suspect, nor did the two work in the same building or workgroup.

Just before 6 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 22, multiple people called 911 to report the incident at Turing Street and 156th Avenue Northeast in Redmond. 

An officer found the victim laying face-up on the sidewalk with multiple stab wounds. After he was taken to the hospital, the victim told police he was standing at the crosswalk at the intersection when he saw the suspect, identified as Joseph Cantrell, walking down Turing Street in his direction.

The victim said he couldn't understand what Cantrell was saying as he continued to walk in the victim's direction, according to court documents. 

The victim turned away but noticed Cantrell walking up to him while shouting out of the corner of his eye. The victim suddenly felt a knife stabbing his neck, then head and multiple other areas on the right side of his body. The victim was knocked onto his back and he began to fight back while the suspect allegedly attempted to stab him again. 

Someone in a van pulled up to the intersection and got out of their car, screaming at the suspect to stop, according to court documents. The suspect then fled westbound on Northeast Turing Street. 

The victim suffered a brain bleed, skull fracture and at least a dozen other stab wounds to his body. 

Witnesses approached detectives at the scene and told them they noticed a trail of blood on the fourth floor of their apartment building nearby. Apartment staff told detectives they had reviewed security footage and believed they identified the suspect who lived at the building with his dog. 

After reviewing security footage and learning the suspect's identity, police surrounded the front door and back patio of the suspect's apartment and attempted to get him to come out. Police also called the suspect at a phone number given to them by the apartment building, but there was no answer.

After obtaining a search warrant, Redmond police arrested the suspect with the help of SWAT. 

During a search of the suspect's apartment, police found blood-stained blankets, clothes, shoes, a blood-stained lanyard and a knife with two dried-red stains, suspected to be blood, on either side.

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