CALUMET COUNTY (NBC 26) — A person was stabbed in the leg after arriving at a farm to meet with someone he spoke with online, according to the Calumet County Sheriff.
A statement from the Sheriff says it started Monday, when the Calumet County Sheriff’s Office received a request from a concerned party to check the welfare of a person who was possibly in danger at a residence in the village of Hilbert.
According to the Sheriff's statement, when deputies arrived and spoke with someone at the residence, he initially denied anything was wrong. Then, a second person, the victim, came out of the basement and asked for help. The Sheriff said the victim had blood on his pant leg and indicated that he had been stabbed.
The victim was taken to ThedaCare Regional Medical Center-Neenah and treated for a knife wound. His wounds are not believed to be life threatening.
The Sheriff said deputies learned that the male victim was from Columbia County and had been communicating with the suspect online. The victim stated he believed he was speaking with a female and he agreed to meet her at a farm in a rural area.
When the victim arrived at the farm, the Sheriff said his vehicle was approached by the suspects who the victim thought were police officers. The Sheriff said in a statement the victim was then taken at gunpoint into the suspects’ vehicle where he was eventually stabbed. The Sheriff's statement said the suspects then drove the victim to a residence in the village of Hilbert where he was held until deputies arrived.
The Sheriff said 30-year-old Juan Pablo Cruz was taken into custody on an outstanding warrant through Brown County and is being held at the Calumet County Jail. On Tuesday, the Sheriff said a second suspect was taken into custody in the town of Brillion.
Charges will be referred to the Calumet County District Attorney’s Office later Tuesday for reckless endangering safety, kidnapping, robbery and impersonating a police officer. The Calumet County Sheriff’s Office continues to investigate the incident.
