Brittany Horn

The News Journal

A 46-year-old Wilmington man has been arrested in connection with a fight on a DART bus that led to a stabbing and caused minor injuries to a state police trooper.

Early Wednesday afternoon, state police were called to a Christiana Mall bus stop, which is where the stabbing occurred, said Master Cpl. Jeffrey Hale, a spokesman for the Delaware State Police.

Troopers were called to respond to the bus stop in front of the Nordstrom store at 1:55 p.m. for a report of a fight in which a male victim had been cut by a man who was armed with a knife. A man, later identified as Richard J. Williams Jr., had been at the bus stop when, for an unknown reason, he began to chase an unknown man while armed with a large serrated kitchen knife, according to a press release issued Thursday by the Delaware State Police.

The victim was able to flee the area without sustaining any injuries, but then Williams targeted a second victim, a 22-year-old man who was also standing at the bus stop, police said. Williams swung the knife at the victim, striking him on his hand and wrist, police said. Christiana Mall security staff who responded to the incident were able to keep Williams away from other potential victims until the arrival of the state police, who ordered him to drop the knife, according to the release.

Williams, however, ignored their commands and lunged at them with the knife, police said. Williams was taken into custody when other state police troopers and officers from the New Castle County Police arrived, and he was hit with a stun gun, according to the release.

The 22-year-old injured man also was removed from the scene by ambulance and transported to Christiana Hospital, where he was treated for his serious but non-life-threatening injuries. It is not believed that the victim was specifically targeted in this incident. A Delaware state trooper was also slightly injured during the struggle with Williams. He was also treated at the Christiana Hospital and released.

Williams also was taken to Christiana Hospital, where he was treated and released. He was taken to Troop 2, where he was charged with second-degree assault, possession of a deadly weapon during the commission of a felony, two counts of aggravated menacing, resisting arrest, offensive touching of a law enforcement officer and disorderly conduct. He was sent to the Howard Young Correctional Facility in lieu of $73,050 cash bail.