Oakland

Boy Stabbed in San Leandro Stabbed During Bank Robbery β€˜Doing Well'

The boy was sitting in a lobby chair at the Wells Fargo bank waiting for a relative when he was stabbed.

A 12-year-old boy who was stabbed by an erratic woman trying to rob bank customers in San Leandro on Monday is recovering from surgery and "doing well," a police lieutenant said Tuesday.

The boy was sitting in a lobby chair at the Wells Fargo bank at 1298 E. 14th St. at about 11:30 a.m. waiting for a relative to finish a bank transaction.

He was suddenly stabbed three times in the back, including a deep wound near his neck, by a woman identified as 32-year-old Oakland resident Iyona Hammond, according to police Lt. Robert McManus.

"A complete surprise," McManus said. "Totally unprovoked. Something that we are calling senseless."

Hammond had allegedly come into the bank and quickly became agitated, demanding money from bank customers and robbing one customer making a deposit of several hundred dollars, McManus said.

The stabbed boy felt like he'd been punched in the back and ran toward his relative, leaving a trail of blood behind him.

Bank employees and customers called 911. Security guards in the bank tried to keep Hammond there initially, but she got around them just as police officers arrived and found her fleeing from the front entrance with blood on her hands and a pair of scissors, police said.

She was arrested and booked into jail. The bank was closed while employees cleaned the blood from the floor, according to police.

Police Lt. Robert McManus said today that the boy, who was visiting the Bay Area from out of state, had surgery on Monday and is in stable condition.

"He and his family are doing well," McManus said.

Melinda Krigel of Oakland Children's Hospital was surprised to see just how quickly the boy was recovering.

"Many times stab wounds can be much more grevious grievance in nature and so it's a pretty miraculous recovery," she said.

McManus would not comment on Hammond's mental state Monday, but said she was medically cleared for incarceration and booked into Santa Rita Jail without bail. The attack was "completely unprovoked" and Hammond could face attempted murder charges, he said.

The Police Department will submit its case to the Alameda County District Attorney's Office on Wednesday morning ahead of a scheduled 2 p.m. court appearance in Hayward, McManus said.

A GoFundMe account has been set up to accumulate support for the boy's future legal and medical expenses. 

Elyce Kirchner contributed to this report.

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