Police: Four Mile Run Trail Stabbing Victim Remains Hospitalized

A woman who was stabbed repeatedly on the Four Mile Run Trail last weekend remains hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.

The woman was stabbed three times in the neck after screaming for help, according to the Arlington County Police Department.

She was walking alone on the Four Mile Run Trail, near where that trail meets the Washington & Old Dominion Trail shortly after 11 a.m. Saturday, police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck said.

The woman told police that a man approached her from behind, pulled out a knife, and motioned for her to move off the trail, Sternbeck said. At that point, she screamed for help.

People nearby heard her screaming and went to help, but the attacker had run away by the time they arrived, Sternbeck said.

"There was people close enough by to hear her scream for help, yet far enough away that they did not see the suspect," he told Patch. "It was a bold attack in the middle of a Saturday morning when that trail is usually heavily occupied."

The woman was taken to Inova Fairfax Hospital. Because of the location of her wounds, hospital staff wanted to keep her for observation, Sternbeck said.

The attacker has been described as a man in his 20s, about 4 feet, 8 inches tall and weighing 130 pounds. He was wearing a yellow Polo shirt and dark pants at the time of the attack.

Police aren't sure of the motive; the man did not try to take anything from the woman or assault her, Sternbeck said.

"These attacks are frequently occurring to female victims who are alone on the trail, so we once again urge not just females but all individuals who are going to be traveling on the trail or using it for exercise to invite a friend along or go with a group," he said.