HACKENSACK, New Jersey (WABC) — A 16-year-old boy was stabbed right in front of a police station in New Jersey at around 3 p.m. Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Authorities say it happened at Central Avenue and Union Street in Hackensack, just feet away from the police station.<\/p>\n
The teen escaped the assailants and ended up a block away at Banta Place and State Street where several shops were open.<\/p>\n
Leyda Crafton was inside her business, Alexis’ Naturals, and did not notice something was wrong until she looked outside.<\/p>\n
“I realized that the street is cordoned off. There were two police vehicles there,” Crafton said.<\/p>\n
Bergen County police say a group of suspects approached the teenager and at some point the situation escalated. The suspects managed to get away.<\/p>\n
Medics rushed the child to Hackensack University Medical Center in stable condition.<\/p>\n
“It’s pretty well lit around these parts. So I definitely do think the first thing that comes to my mind is that it could have been interpersonal violence,” said Lucia Mendoza of Marimba Cafe.<\/p>\n
“I always see the kids walking from school, so it’s really sad that this happened and this is really a safe street,” Crafton added.<\/p>\n
Luz Diaz, the victim’s aunt, spoke at a city council meeting Tuesday to share her frustration over the situation, saying that the victim had been targeted before. Diaz claimed that people have showed up to her sister’s house in ski masks, adding that this all started in high school, leading the family to withdraw the child from school.<\/p>\n
“You guys need to do something, because we pay a lot of taxes for the police department … I heard that it was close by, where this happened, it was close to here, this is so sad,” Diaz said.<\/p>\n
“What happened is a tragedy and it should not have happened. It should not have happened. We need to do better,” Hackensack Mayor Caseen Gaines reacted to the stabbing.<\/p>\n
It is unclear what led to the stabbing, and no description of the suspects has been released.<\/p>\n
No arrests have been made.<\/p>\n
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