A man who has a lengthy criminal history is accused of stabbing a mother and her toddler on Wednesday in Providence, Rhode Island.
Police identified the suspect as 46-year-old Nelson Blanco who allegedly targeted the mother and her little girl, whom he did not know, as they waited on a street corner for the woman’s other children to come out of school, the New York Post reported Friday.
Blanco is accused of yelling at the mother, then as she tried to move away, he stabbed her and the toddler. Now, the girl is “fighting for her life” at a hospital and is in critical condition while her mother has since been released, law enforcement told the Post.
Blanco, who is believed to be homeless, ran from the scene when neighbors took action to help the victims. The suspect allegedly broke into a nearby home and hid there until he was found and arrested.
His background includes charges of assault and battery, breaking and entering, and possession of a stolen vehicle.
In 2003, he stabbed two seven-year-old boys in Providence, according to WJAR:
Court records obtained by the I-Team show Blanco spent years at Eleanor Slater Hospital after his mental health evaluation, but his public defender for that case, retired attorney David Levy, said he eventually had to be released under state law.
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Rhode Island law allows hospitalization for treatment aimed at restoring competency, with periodic court review. But the criminal charges must be dismissed once a person’s commitment reaches two-thirds of the maximum possible prison term for the most serious charge.
Police arrested Blanco in 2024 regarding a domestic violence case, and a court order showed he was again found incompetent to stand trial. A judge green-lighted outpatient treatment for the suspect after a doctor found he was “not a danger to the community or himself and recommended outpatient services,” the WJAR article read.
The victims in the 2003 stabbing told WPRI this week the horrific experience changed them forever:
One of those victims said he saw the suspect’s face regarding the most recent incident and knew it was the man who had attacked him years ago even before seeing his name.
Meanwhile, a witness to the latest stabbing said she did not hesitate to help the victims, per ABC 7.
“I helped the baby out the carriage. And when I saw she was bleeding, I like put her to the floor, and I was putting pressure. Another lady came and stopped in the middle of the street. She came and helped me apply the pressure, and then the baby stopped breathing; so we had to start performing CPR and breathing for the baby until the ambulance came,” nursing assistant Jessie Palmer recalled.
Blanco faces several charges including two counts of assault with intent to commit murder, assault with a deadly weapon, and breaking and entering.
“That man’s evil and what he did was wrong, and I don’t even think jail’s enough punishment for him,” Palmer told ABC 7.
