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Police seek suspect in stabbing of cabdriver
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Jose Torres Montes
A cabdriver was stabbed and her vehicle stolen early Wednesday in Phoenix.
The 30-year-old woman was stabbed in the throat and stomach in what Phoenix police are calling a robbery, according to spokesman Reuben Gonzales.
Police have identified the suspect as Jose Torres Montes, 38, but they won’t say how they know who he is. He was last seen wearing a mariachi outfit and carrying a guitar. Police are still searching for him.
At about 4 a.m., the driver called a dispatcher at Estrella Taxi Co. with her location and asked the dispatcher to call police.
Phoenix police found the driver in a parking lot near 33rd Avenue and Van Buren Street. Her cab was recovered later at 35th Avenue and Buckeye Road.
The driver was taken to a hospital and is in critical condition, although Gonzales said her injuries aren’t life-threatening.
The victim told police she picked up a fare in the area of 47th Avenue and Encanto Boulevard. The driver took the man to 35th Avenue and Washington Street, where she said the man attacked her in the cab. She said the man stabbed her multiple times with what she believed was a knife.
The man forced the driver into the trunk of her cab and drove around. The cabbie escaped from the trunk.
A dispatcher at Estrella Taxi told police the driver’s last call was at around midnight. Police have not released the cabdriver’s name.
Police are still searching for Montes. Gonzales said Montes could face charges including armed robbery, kidnapping and attempted murder.
Anyone with additional information is asked to call Phoenix police at (602) 262-6141 or Silent Witness at (480) 948-6377.
(CORRECTION: An earlier online headline to this story stated a suspect had been arrested.)
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