A Good Samaritan who defended a woman against a machete-wielding man in a California Starbucks on Sunday suffered serious stab wounds.
Blaine Hodge, 27, suffered serious injuries to his hand from a machete blade after he jumped in front of the attacker to protect the woman at a Starbucks in Bakersfield on Sunday, KGET reported.
The attacker allegedly entered the coffee shop with a machete in hand chasing after his girlfriend.
“She was panicked. She was saying, ‘Help me.’ Then, at one point, she said, ‘This guy’s going to kill me,’” said Joe Harris, Hodge’s friend.
Authorities say Hodge was stabbed multiple times after he ran in between the suspect and his girlfriend.
Police later arrested the alleged attacker, whom authorities identified as Robert Rivas, 31, and charged him with attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon, and resisting arrest, the New York Post reported.
The Fresno Bee reported that Hodge and the woman were rushed to a local hospital in critical but stable condition. Hodge had to undergo surgery and receive 200 stitches on his right hand.
Hodge is recovering in the hospital as of Tuesday, and doctors are trying to determine whether he can ever use his right hand again.
Hodge, in a series of videos posted on Facebook, thanked everyone from his hospital bed for their concern and support.
“Some stuff happened at Starbucks today and there was a person in danger and I couldn’t just let her die, so, here I am,” Hodge said in one of the videos. “I’m okay, it’s still lit, it’s always gonna be lit and I appreciate all your concerns and hopes and prayers that have been going up. I’m gonna make it out of this okay.”
A GoFundMe page has been set up to raise money for Hodge’s medical bills as he recovers from his injuries. The page raised $9,400 as of Tuesday evening, surpassing its initial $9,000 goal.
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