Edimari Hernandez Chacon, 7, was fatally stabbed on a Chicago street by a stranger who attacked from behind in broad daylight.
The child was walking hand-in-hand with another woman in the South Side neighborhood of Chatham shortly before noon on Saturday when an unidentified woman ran up behind her and stabbed her multiple times in the back with a sharp object, according to surveillance footage reviewed by authorities. Witnesses frantically rushed to help the wounded girl after the attack.
Edimari was transported to a nearby children’s hospital, where she was pronounced dead Saturday afternoon.
Bystanders at the scene detained the alleged attacker until police arrived. The woman was later taken into custody after receiving treatment at a local hospital for injuries she sustained while being restrained by those civilians.
The motive for the killing remains unknown.
Resident Denesta Freeman spoke to WLS about the attack on her neighborhood.
“I just don’t know what this world is coming to … for a 7-year-old girl like that to be getting stabbed,” Freeman said.
She continued, “I never thought it would come to this point. I never did. These kids nowadays are not getting to live their life.”
Another local mother, who requested anonymity, expressed a visceral connection to the loss.
“As a mom, I feel hurt! Because my daughter is the same age. I feel hurt! I feel like it was my child,” she shared.
Alderman Michelle Harris, who represents the Chatham area, issued a statement addressing the violence in her ward.
“I am deeply saddened by the senseless stabbing,” Harris wrote.
She also praised the quick action of neighborhood residents, noting that the “bystanders who quickly intervened—helping to detain the suspect and get assistance on the way” may have prevented additional harm through their intervention.
The Chicago Police Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the investigation.