Arlington, Virginia: Bystanders Restrain Crystal City Knife Suspect After Two Men Are Cut
Police say the man tried to stab a driver unloading his vehicle on South Clark Street on Monday night, then cut two men near 23rd Street South before bystanders held him for officers. David Lamont Bates, 48, of Arlington faces two counts of malicious wounding and one count of attempted malicious wounding.
Key points
- Bystanders in Crystal City restrained a man with a knife on Monday night after he cut two men and tried to stab a third, Arlington County Police said.
- Police were dispatched at about 9:38 p.m. on Monday, November 9, to the 2100 block of South Clark Street, according to the Arlington County Police Department account reported by ARLnow and FOX 5 DC.
- A man told police he was removing items from his vehicle on South Clark Street when the suspect approached him and tried to stab him, ARLnow reported from the police account.
Bystanders in Crystal City restrained a man with a knife on Monday night after he cut two men and tried to stab a third, Arlington County Police said. Both men who were cut were taken to a hospital with injuries police called non-life-threatening.
Police were dispatched at about 9:38 p.m. on Monday, November 9, to the 2100 block of South Clark Street, according to the Arlington County Police Department account reported by ARLnow and FOX 5 DC.
The first attack on Clark Street
A man told police he was removing items from his vehicle on South Clark Street when the suspect approached him and tried to stab him, ARLnow reported from the police account. The man ran from the area and was not hurt.
The suspect then walked to the 400 block of 23rd Street South, a few blocks away in the same neighborhood of office towers, hotels and apartment buildings.
Bystanders step in on 23rd Street
On 23rd Street South, the suspect confronted a second man while holding a knife, FOX 5 DC reported. The two struggled, and the man suffered a laceration that police described as non-life-threatening.
Bystanders then intervened, restrained the suspect and held him until officers reached the scene and took him into custody, police said. ARLnow reported that scanner traffic placed the restraint outside a 7-Eleven store on 23rd Street.
While officers searched the surrounding blocks, they found a third man with a laceration, also non-life-threatening, FOX 5 DC reported. ARLnow reported that the two men who were cut were taken to a hospital for treatment, and that police recovered two folding knives at the scene.
Charges against an Arlington man
Police identified the suspect as David Lamont Bates, 48, of Arlington. He was arrested and charged with two counts of malicious wounding and one count of attempted malicious wounding, according to the police account published by ARLnow and reported by FOX 5 DC.
The charges are allegations, and Bates is presumed innocent unless he is proven guilty in court. Police said the investigation is continuing, and they have not announced a motive for the attacks. Police have not said whether the men who were attacked knew the suspect.
Crystal City sits in southern Arlington, across the Potomac River from Washington, and its streets stay busy into the evening with office workers, hotel guests and residents.
Timeline
- Nov 9, 2026At about 9:38 p.m., Arlington County Police are dispatched to the 2100 block of South Clark Street in Crystal City, where a man says a suspect tried to stab him as he removed items from his vehicle. He runs away unhurt.
- Nov 9, 2026In the 400 block of 23rd Street South, a second man is cut in a struggle. Bystanders restrain the suspect until officers arrive, and a search of the surrounding blocks finds a third man with a laceration.
- Nov 10, 2026FOX 5 DC and ARLnow report the arrest of David Lamont Bates, 48, of Arlington, on two counts of malicious wounding and one count of attempted malicious wounding. Police say the investigation is continuing.