Edimar Carreño, a 7-year-old Venezuelan girl originally from Villa Rosa on Margarita Island, died on October 3 after being stabbed multiple times in the back by an unknown woman in Chicago, according to local police and regional reports. The attack occurred at approximately 11:55 a.m. near the intersection of South Cottage Grove Avenue and East 86th Street in the Chatham neighborhood on the city’s South Side, specifically near the 8600 block of South Cottage Grove Avenue.
Did You Know? The victim was identified in local official records and by family members using multiple name variants, including Edimar Carreño, Edimari Hernández Chacón, and Eddimar Paola Hernández Chacón, having recently emigrated from Venezuela’s Nueva Esparta state.
The Fatal Attack on South Cottage Grove Avenue
The victim was walking along the sidewalk in company of her mother and sister when an adult woman approached them, drew a sharp cutting object, and attacked the child from behind. Bystanders who witnessed the incident intervened immediately to stop the assailant from escaping. Witnesses detained the suspect at the scene and handed her over to arriving officers from the Chicago Police Department.
William Smith, who works at a barbershop on the same street, told Telemundo he saw people running and went outside to see what was happening. Smith said he saw a crowd around the girl and heard the mother screaming, My baby, my baby!
He reported seeing a young woman run past, followed by two men, and heard someone shout that the woman was the one who did it and was trying to escape.
Emergency responders transported the wounded child to Comer Children’s Hospital in critical condition, where she subsequently died from her injuries. The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed the fatal outcome following the morning assault. Meanwhile, the unnamed female suspect received medical treatment at a hospital for minor injuries sustained during her apprehension by citizens before being placed into police custody.
Investigation Into Motives and Lack of Relationship
Detectives from the Chicago Police Department have stated that preliminary findings indicate no prior relationship existed between the victim and the alleged attacker. Investigators are treating the incident as an apparent random assault while working to establish concrete motives. At the time of initial reports, prosecutors had not yet formally announced criminal charges against the suspect, and local authorities had not officially released her name to the public.
Police and Telemundo Chicago, after speaking with the family, confirmed the girl and the suspect did not know each other. Detectives initially sought to determine if any link existed between the two.
Local leaders and neighborhood residents have voiced deep concern over the tragedy. Michelle Harris, the Chicago alderwoman representing the district, released a statement expressing profound sadness over the fatal stabbing. Community members near the scene described shock and grief as relatives of the young girl deal with the immediate aftermath of the violent crime in an unfamiliar city.
The family told Telemundo Chicago they are in shock and do not know how funerals are conducted in the United States. Estefanía Hernández, the mother of the victim, said, Let the death of my daughter not stay like this, let there be justice
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Community Reaction
Dayelli Oropeza, a local mother, said she puts herself in the victim’s place and would not want that to happen to her children. Stephanie Johnigan called the event terrible, stating that children are losing their lives at younger ages every day due to senseless violence.
Alderwoman Michelle Harris stated in a declaration that no child should have to experience violence or fear simply for walking on the sidewalk
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Details of the Chicago stabbing and suspect
Where did the attack take place?
The stabbing occurred on October 3 around 11:55 in the morning along South Cottage Grove Avenue, near East 86th Street, in the Chatham neighborhood on Chicago’s South Side.
What do police know about the suspect?
Authorities stated that the suspect and the young victim did not know each other. The woman was detained by civilian witnesses at the scene, treated for minor injuries, and placed under police custody.
Who identified the victim?
The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office along with family members identified the 7-year-old girl, who had recently migrated with her family from Villa Rosa in Venezuela’s Nueva Esparta.
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