Man Stabbed Stranger Through Car Window, Gets Attempted Murder Charge: Bergen Prosecutor

BERGEN COUNTY, NJ —A 29-year-old Piscataway man was charged with attempted murder this weekend after allegedly stabbing a stranger through a car window in Englewood Cliffs on Friday.

Harshkumar H. Patel was charged with attempted murder, aggravated assault, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, and possession of a weapon, the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office said.

The Bergen County Prosecutor's Office Major Crimes Unit was notified on Saturday, June 15, 2024, that the previous day, at approximately 5:34 p.m., the Englewood Cliffs Police Department responded to a stabbing on Sylvan Avenue.

Police found a 30-year-old victim who was transported via ambulance to Hackensack University Medical Center, treated, and released.

"It was determined that the suspect approached the victim while the victim was in a vehicle exiting a parking lot on Sylvan Avenue," prosecutors said. "The suspect stabbed the victim several times through the open window of the victim’s vehicle before fleeing. Detectives further concluded that the suspect was a stranger to the victim, and the attack was unprovoked."

Patel is being held in police custody at Bergen New Bridge Medical Center in Paramus, awaiting his first court appearance in Bergen County Superior Court in Hackensack.