A man in the USA is recovering in the hospital after he was stabbed twice by a man who asked for a lift to a local supermarket.
Mechanic Doctore Paton from the city of Independence, Missouri State, USA, was working on his truck when the suspect, identified as Tyler Rizer, 28, approached him asking for a lift on Friday, 29th September.
Paton said: “He said his car broke down there, and he needed a ride back to Target, and me being a nice guy, I agreed to give him a ride.”
He recalled how once the two got in the vehicle, the 28-year-old man began acting strange and tried to change the destination they were heading to.
Paton continued: “He kept telling me someone was trying to sell him to the cartel.”
But things reportedly went wrong after Rizer suddenly jerked the wheel back and grabbed a steak knife from the centre console that Doctore had left in the vehicle from a dinner at work.
The victim’s wife, Heather Paton, said: “Rizer then told Doctore to keep driving or he would stab him.
“My husband then proceeded to drive and attempted to get off the highway at Noland road where Rizer jerked the wheel back onto the highway.
“They hit traffic and the man told my husband to go around. Doctore drove on the shoulder of the highway and was able to slow the car enough to throw it into the park and jerked the keys from the ignition.
“That’s when Tyler stabbed my husband two times in the chest, lacerating each lung.”
Doctore said that Rizer attacked him when he tried to get out of the car, and added: “I thought my life was in danger. I thought he was going to kill me.”
Heather added: “My husband then ran from the car to the back side of some nearby houses where he jumped a 5-foot fence and was screaming for help. A man came to his aid.”
The man chased the 28-year-old suspect away with a shovel, reports claimed.
Paton, who was afterwards instantly transferred to a local hospital with critical injuries, said: “I thank him very much for saving my life.
“I would tell people to think twice about who they give rides to and be very cautious about who you give a ride to. Stranger danger is real.”
He reportedly had one of his chest tubes removed on Tuesday, 3rd October.
The family hoped more tubes would be removed soon, but Paton will still have staples in his stomach for the next month.
Heather said: “It’s really rough. I’m a mother of three kids, and he’s not here to be able to help.
“Now with this, I’m the only person who can work. I’m the only person here taking care of the kids. I don’t have anybody to babysit. I don’t know how I’m going to make it.
“I would have never expected this kind of day to turn out from just a simple ride; a kind gesture to help somebody in need.”
In a fundraiser initiated to help her cover the hospital costs, Heather said: “I’m asking for this money to help with the bills incurred by this violent act.”
Meanwhile, police reported that Rizer jumped a fence following the incident and entered a yard where he threatened a resident and her two children.
He reportedly stole their car, before getting involved in a road crash. He was caught by police officers after he tried to carjack another person following the accident.
Rizer was charged with first-degree assault and armed criminal action and is currently being held at the Jackson County jail on a USD 500,000 (GBP 410,280) bond.
