Source: Alameda County Sherriff’s Office / Alameda County Sherriff’s Office
The horrific stabbing death of 18-year-old Nia Wilson at a BART subway train station in California over the weekend has rocked the nation while setting the stage for a massive manhunt for the suspect. John Cowell, a white man who was seen on surveillance video at the scene of the crime, has been arrested.
Local outlet KGO-TV reports:
The suspect in the double stabbing at MacArthur BART that left one sister dead and another injured is now in police custody. Officers say they followed up on tips from the public and found him on an Antioch-bound train.
BART Police Chief Carlos Rojas held a media availability at Rockridge Station. He says the arrest was uneventful and that the suspect was taken into custody without incident.
A BART rider on an Antioch-bound train captured the arrest of 27-year-old John Cowell on her cellphone camera. Officers had intercepted the train at the Pleasant Hill BART station after getting tips from the public. The man, wanted for Sunday night’s double stabbing, had been at large for nearly 21 hours.
“They asked him what his name was. He was truthful with the officers in terms of his name and they asked him for identification and he did provide a California identification,” said Rojas.
The incident happened Sunday night (July 22) at the MacArthur Station in Oakland. Nia Wilson, and her sister, Letifah Wilson, waiting on a train when police say Cowell brandished the knife and began attacking them. While race has been thrown around as a factor in the case, police say that have yet to determine a motive.
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Photo: Alameda County Sheriff’s Office
