Gilroy man, 22, arrested for attempted murder after stabbing
Gilroy – A local man was arrested for attempted murder after he stabbed a man in a fight off Rogers Lane, police said.
Juan Gomez, 22, a Gilroy resident, is being held in Santa Clara County jail as police continue a search for a second suspect, Christian Gomez, 24, also a Gilroy resident. Police did not know if the suspects are related.
The stabbing victim, a 24-year-old male who police would not identify, was flown Sunday night to a local trauma center and released after being treated for a “major laceration” to the left arm. The weapon was not recovered, but police said it was an “unidentified stabbing-type instrument.”
Police Sgt. Kurt Svardal said the attackers are believed to be gang members, although the victim and several males with him at time are not. He could not specify what sparked the violence.
“It seems like it was a pretty small altercation,” he said. “When it comes to any sort of gang-related incident, the logic for why they start? There usually isn’t any.”
Police received an emergency call at 6:17pm Sunday in response to a fight in front of an apartment complex on the 7400 block of Rogers Lane, a neighborhood just west of the Sixth Street overpass. The attackers fled the scene by the time police arrived, but members of the department’s Anti-Crime Unit tracked down Juan Gomez after speaking with witnesses accompanying the victim.
The ACT team, as it is known, handles crimes involving gang members or with “gang overtones,” according to Svardal, who explained the seven-member team has specialized training in identifying and tracking gang suspects.
A local resident sitting on her stoop across from San Ysidro Park said violence in the area is nothing new.
“At night it happens all the time,” she said. “There are a lot of gangs down on that street.”
Svardal said the Rogers Lane area has a violent history, but has been relatively quiet in the last year.
“If you go way back, there were definitely some gang issues,” he said. “There was a homicide back there a few years ago, a few shootings. But I don’t know of any significant stuff like this in the past year or so.”
Svardal said joint efforts by a gang task force, police, schools, and others have helped quell gang violence. He expressed hope that the Rogers Lane attack is not a sign of a flare-up.
“Any time we have an incident like this? Could it be the start of something?” he asked. “It could very well be. But we hope it’s not the start of something. We hope it’s an isolated incident.”
Gomez was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon and violating probation.
Anyone with information about the incident may contact investigators at 846-0346. Witnesses wishing to remain anonymous may call 846-0348.
