CHICAGO — A migrant who previously lived at one of the city-run shelters downtown has been charged with stabbing and seriously injuring another man in the Loop. Chicago police said officers arrested Ralwin Galito Perez, 30, on Tuesday to face charges.
Cell phone video of the attack circulated widely in the days after the March 18 stabbing. CPD said it all started when a 27-year-old victim got into an argument with another man near the corner of Dearborn and Van Buren around 6:15 p.m. Video posted by Chicago Critter showed the assailant holding a knife and taking full roundhouse swings with the weapon.
The victim fell to the pavement during the incident and the assailant could be seen stabbing him while he was down. CPD officers applied a chest seal and a tourniquet to stem the victim’s blood loss from stab wounds on his arm and torso, but the assailant was already gone when they arrived.
More details about how police identified Perez as the assailant and exactly what prosecutors believe transpired are expected to be revealed during his detention hearing at the Leighton Criminal Courthouse this afternoon.
He is charged with one count of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon.
Records show Chicago police have arrested Perez three other times: on allegations of shoplifting at Nordstrom Rack, 101 East Chicago, on September 19, 2023; driving without a license and registration violations near the old Wadsworth Elementary School migrant shelter on November 25; and for allegedly driving without a license in the Loop on January 3.
