Young Boy Allegedly Chased and Stabbed by Random Man After Saying 3 Letters
One of two boys who hurled a video game insult at a man last month ended up hospitalized after being stabbed.
The incident took place on March 22 in Mill Creek, Washington, according to KPCQ.
Joshua Federov said he and an 11-year-old friend encountered a man near a shopping mall.
“He was at the crosswalk, and we were on the hill at the Dollar Store, and then we yelled ‘NPC,’ and he jaywalked across the street and then started chasing us into the Dollar Store,” Federov said.
In video games, an NPC refers to a “non-playable character,” according to the Herald.
It reported that an internet meme popular on TikTok last year used the acronym as an insult.
Federov said the reaction was unexpected, according to KPCQ.
“We’re going to be fine if we just run into the Dollar Store. That’s what I thought. When I saw him pull out a knife, I realized it wasn’t a joke,” he said.
Joshua David Pence was charged with two counts of assault with a weapon.
According to the Herald, after one boy was stabbed an attempt was made to stab the other boy.
“My son’s attacker has been arrested and charges have been filed but this ordeal has left my son in the ICU with a pierced lung and liver — and left our family to figure out more complications than we can count,” Shanai Grace, who described herself as the victim’s mother, posted on a GoFundMe.
Identified by KPCQ as Shanai Rowton, she talked of watching her son in the hospital.
“[My son] got oxygen, they had just given him a unit of blood because he lost blood,” she said.
She said her son, who has since come home, requires treatment of his wound multiple times per day.
The mothers of both boys involved said they thought the community was safe.
“We’ve got druggies, homelessness — like, it’s migrating this way, so I don’t feel like we’re safe anywhere at this point,” Rowton said.
“After this incident, I’m like, what do you do now? Where do I move my kids? After what happened, it’s not safe here anymore,” Julia Federov said.
Truth and Accuracy
We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.
