Bond set at $250K for Abby man charged with stabbing
An 18-year-old Abbotsford man made his first appearance in Marathon County Court on February 8 after being charged with first degree intentional homicide with the use of a dangerous weapon.
According to a criminal complaint filed by the Marathon County District Attorney’s office, Leovigildo Cruz Hernandez is facing up to 60 years in prison for stabbing an individual at Perla’s Place in Unity the night of January 22.
At the February 8 hearing, Marathon County Circuit Judge Rick Cveykus set Hernandez’s cash bond at $250,000 and ordered that he would not be allowed to have any contact with the victim.
The complaint states on January 22 at 2:11 a.m., the Colby-Abby Police Department was dispatched to Perla’s Place Bar in Unity for a male party who had been stabbed and was bleeding from the stomach.
The officer entered the restaurant and observed the man holding his stomach while the owner said she had just saw the stabbed man and called 911.
Officers from both the Spencer Police Department and Marathon County Sheriff’s Department arrived on-scene and attended to the injured person. The Spencer officer secured the building and observed two males coming from the rest room. A man was holding Hernandez by the collar and pointing at him. The officer secured Hernandez in handcuffs and observed blood on Hernandez’s hand as well as a small cut on his finger.
The officers located a knife ten yards to the west of the initial stabbing.
The victim of the stabbing was transported to the Marshfield Medical Center by ambulance. The man suffered two lacerations to the torso, just below his ribs.
The victim stated he knew Hernandez because he is from the same hometown in Mexico and spoke with Hernandez while at the restaurant.
The victim stated he did not remember anything that occurred outside the bar. He was unsure of who had stabbed him. The victim said he asked Hernandez to borrow money about a year ago and Hernandez borrowed him $600. The victim had paid back all but $50 of the money loaned according to the complaint.
A witness stated he was in the bathroom at the time of the stabbing and when he came outside, the victim was laying on the ground and a vehicle sped away, leaving Hernandez behind. The witness believed the vehicle belonged to Hernandez’s friends.
Another witness stated Hernandez tried to stop the vehicle by standing in front of it but said the car stopped, backed up and drove around Hernandez, leaving him behind.
The Marathon County Sheriff’s Department was unable to positively identify Hernandez initially but with the help of the Department of Homeland Security Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the department was able to obtain a copy of the man’s birth certificate.
Hernandez’s initial review hearing was February 10 where court officials noted Hernandez had not been appointed a defender at that time.
Hernandez had a pretrial conference set for Wednesday and will next appear in court for a review hearing on February 17.
