A Las Cruces man suspected of getting into a fight and stabbing a teenager at a local fast food restaurant has been arrested and charged with a felony.
Jimmy Barela Jr., 36, of the 1600 block of Ebony Avenue, is charged with a third-degree felony count of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and three misdemeanor counts of battery.
Shortly after 8 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 23, Las Cruces Police were dispatched to Mountainview Regional Medical Center where a 17-year-old boy was being treated for a stab wound to a hand. The boy’s injury was not life-threatening.
Officers learned that the 17-year-old boy and two friends were at the Sonic Drive-in, at 1210 N. Solano Dr., when a man in another vehicle began yelling at him. The man, later identified as Barela, approached the teenager and began punching him.
At some point during the fight, Barela is suspected of pulling out a pocket knife and waving it at the teenager, cutting the boy’s hand. Detectives believe the fight may have resulted from a dispute over a parking space.
Barela fled from the area but an alert friend of the teenager jotted down the license plate number of the fleeing vehicle before transporting the teen to the hospital.
Officers subsequently located the vehicle and detained Barela who was in possession of a black pocket knife.
Barela was booked into the Dona Ana County Detention Center with bond set at $50,000.
Information from Las Cruces Police