Police have taken a Providence man into custody after he allegedly stabbed a mother and her two‑year‑old child near an intersection on Wednesday afternoon.
Officers arrested Nelson Blanco soon after the attack, which happened while the mother waited at a street corner for her two older children to return home on a school bus. The toddler was in a stroller at the time.
Authorities say the assault seemed unprovoked, and investigators have yet to determine a motive. Police report that Blanco first approached the woman, hurled lewd insults, and pursued her across the street when she tried to walk away.
Providence Police Chief Oscar Perez outlined the events during a press briefing.
“The suspect approached the mother again and then started insulting the mother before attacking the child with a knife,” Perez said. “The mother also reported that the suspect grabbed her during the incident and that witnesses who were present at the scene intervened, after which the suspect fled the area.”
First responders found both victims with severe wounds to their upper bodies and faces. The mother suffered a stab wound to her shoulder, while the toddler sustained critical injuries and remains hospitalized in life‑threatening condition.
After the assault, a witness chased Blanco as he fled toward Daboll Street and alerted officers that he had forced his way into a nearby home. A woman inside her kitchen at the time was unharmed as the intruder rushed past her toward the cellar.
Police broke open a locked basement door in the residence, found Blanco inside, and placed him under arrest. Detectives also retrieved a blood‑stained knife concealed in an electrical panel box.
During questioning, Blanco admitted to stabbing both the woman and the child, according to police. He now faces charges that include two counts of assault with intent to commit murder, assault with a deadly weapon, breaking into the dwelling of a person over 60, and carrying a knife with a blade longer than three inches.
At his Oct. 8 arraignment, Blanco entered no plea and was ordered held without bail as a bail violator.
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