P.F. Chang's Stabbing Suspect Held Without Bail On Murder Charge
PEABODY (CBS/AP) — A Salem man accused of fatally stabbing a co-worker at a Peabody restaurant has been held without bail on a first-degree murder charge.
Prosecutors say Jaquan Huston admitted to fatally stabbing Elivelton Dias Saturday evening in the kitchen of the P.F. Chang's restaurant at the Northshore Mall. A not guilty plea was entered on Huston's behalf Monday.
Assistant District Attorney Ashlee Logan said Huston was working in the kitchen, thought the 38-year-old Dias was speaking about him, and "plunged the knife into his back." Logan also said there was video of the attack provided by P.F. Chang's.
The 23-year-old Huston's mother, Shawn Maron-Huston, says her son told her he had been threatened by Dias and he "snapped."
"He's not a murderer, but he has anger issues," Maron-Huston told WBZ-TV.
Authorities say Huston fled the restaurant after the stabbing, which happened at about 5:30 during the dinner rush. He was arrested at his home.
A fellow P.F. Chang's chef in court said he was just a few feet away when the stabbing happened. He turned around and saw his friend on the floor with a knife in his back.
"It just just total chaos," he said. "Cooks were screaming, the restaurant emptied out."
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Family members say Dias was an immigrant from Brazil who had just become a father for the first time about two weeks ago.
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Carl Stevens reports:
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