A 23-year-old man has been arrested and charged with murder for stabbing a 66-year-old grandmother and her dog to death in a random attack in a Los Angeles park.
Ricardo Saldivar is behind bars after Jeanne Edgar was found lying in Lone Hill Park in San Dimas with multiple stab wounds alongside her beloved dog, Sashi, on Thursday afternoon.
Saldivar was taken to hospital after Joe Page saw the attack and knocked him out by throwing a rock at his head in a desperate effort to stop him.
‘From what I gathered from my son-in-law, Joe, he actually came after him, first with the knife,’ Tony Page told CBS Los Angeles on Thursday.
Jeanne Edgar (pictured) was found lying in Lone Hill Park in San Dimas with multiple stab wounds alongside her beloved dog, Sashi, on Thursday afternoon
Police at the murder scene in San Dimas, LA, on Thursday. Edgar was walking her dog when she was randomly attacked
‘My son-in-law was able to get to his vehicle safely.
‘At that point, the guy started attacking the lady that was walking her dog, started killing the dog with the knife then turned the knife on her and started killing her,’ he added.
‘He, at that point, got out of his vehicle, found a rock, threw the rock, hit the suspect in the face, knocked him out and right shortly after that the authorities arrived.’
The brutal attack unfolded at around 1.30pm near the intersection of Shellman Avenue and Renwick Road when Edgar was out walking her dog.
Saldivar first approached Page, who is in his 30s, who had parked his car and was walking toward a public restroom at the park.
The suspect, who was described by police as a Hispanic male, allegedly first tried to stab him but he got away and managed to get back to his car.
The attacker then went for Edgar. First, he grabbed her dog’s leash from her and started stabbing the animal.
Once he’d killed the animal, he started attacking the woman, police said.
Edgar’s (pictured) best friend paid tribute to her as ‘a beautiful and big-hearted person’
Page got out of his car to help Edgar striking the suspect with a rock to stop him.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said they received a 911 call that ‘indicated a woman was screaming and later updated indicating a woman was being stabbed.’
Deputies arrived on the scene to find Edgar lying in the street with multiple stab wounds, next to the body of her pet dog.
They were both pronounced dead at the scene.
The attacker was arrested at the scene and taken to the hospital for treatment for a head injury. A knife was also recovered from the scene.
Saldivar was later booked into jail on a murder and attempted murder charge and was held on a $2million bail.
Salvidar is due to appear in court for his arraignment Tuesday.
The motive for the active is not clear.
Lone Hill Park in San Dimas, where the horrifying attack happened at 1.30pm on Thursday
The woman’s body was found outside the park, on the street, next to a house
Edgar’s best friend paid tribute to the 66-year-old as local residents set up a memorial site with candles and flowers close to where she was killed.
‘Jeanne was a beautiful and big-hearted person and she didn’t deserve this,’ Linda Sanders told ABC7.
‘I’ve known her for so long and she’s one of my best friends in the whole world. All are shocked because…I just found out.’
Sanders said her friend loved her dog Sashi as her ‘little baby girl’ and would walk her everyday around the different local parks.
‘She went to different dog parks all the time. She had sweet little Sachi, her little baby girl and she walked her everyday,’ said Sanders.
Another local resident told CBS Los Angeles the attack had rocked the neighborhood.
‘What everyone takes for granted is thinking you have safety no matter where you go,’ said Drew Ashley.
‘Sometimes you gotta watch your surroundings, have some situational awareness.’
Police were seen interviewing neighbors in the street on Thursday while the suspect was in hospital
