Found in Menifee: Police Bust Man Accused of Stabbing Wife, Taking Kids and Fleeing

A San Diego County man suspected of stabbing his wife last weekend and fleeing with two of their children was arrested Tuesday in Menifee, and the children were taken into protective custody.

The events that led to the arrest of Juan Gonzalez, 38, of Vista on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, spousal abuse and making criminal threats began unfolding late Sunday afternoon, according to the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department.

An argument between the victim and her husband turned physical, and Gonzalez allegedly took two of their four children, ages 1 and 3.

About an hour later, the suspect’s wife found him and the children sitting in a pickup truck outside a church in the 1400 block of Foothill Drive, Sgt. Dwain Washington said. When she approached, Gonzalez allegedly got out of the vehicle and stabbed her several times with a pocket knife, then drove off.

Medics took the woman to Palomar Medical Center. The couple’s other two children were taken into protective custody.

Detectives and members of a fugitive task force found Gonzalez in Menifee about 7 Tuesday morning, along with the two missing children, who were unharmed. Deputies took them to a children’s shelter in San Diego.

— City News Service.

(PHOTO: Image via screenshot, courtesy NBC7 San Diego)