Charges: Austin Boy Stops Domestic Attack Against Mother, Fatally Stabbed By Her Husband
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) - An Austin man has been charged after an alleged brutal assault left his wife in the hospital and his 15-year-old stepson dead.
Jaime Arquimides Vaca, 27, has been charged with three counts of second-degree murder and one count of first-degree assault in Mower County.
According to the criminal complaint, an Austin Police officer responded to 808 3rd Avenue northwest at 8:50 a.m. on Dec. 15 on a report that people were being stabbed by a man. When the officer arrived, they found a woman lying in the front yard, bleeding from a stab wound in her neck. She said she had been stabbed by her husband, and that her son, who was also stabbed, was inside.
Officers found the son on the couch, struggling to breathe. He was taken to Mayo Clinic and then flown by helicopter to St. Mary's Hospital in Rochester, but he died from his injuries.
In searching the house, officers found Vaca in the bathroom, holding a knife. When he was told to drop it, but did not comply, officers deployed a Taser. He was then treated for minor injuries before he was taken to the Mower County Jail.
Afterwards, officers cleared the house and found five children hiding upstairs. After a warrant was obtained, BCA agents found two knives in the bathroom.
In post-Miranda interviews with Vaca, he said he and his wife were arguing about his new job, which he had quit the night before. They were texting from separate rooms after he got home at night, but but between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. on Dec. 15, he went into her bedroom they continued to argue. She said she was going to leave him. He then "choked" her and then he "blacked out," the complaint says.
He said he started stabbing his wife, and his stepson came into the room and tried to stop him. He swung at the boy and stabbed him.
In a later interview, Vaca allegedly said "I'm a murderer."
If convicted of all four counts, Vaca could be sentenced to 120 years in prison.
