The man accused of attempting to kill a Sun Prairie Walmart employee by stabbing him multiple times Monday night and then leading police on a chase exceeding 100MPH is an illegal immigrant, Wisconsin Right Now has exclusively learned.
Law enforcement sources have confirmed to WRN that the suspect in the random attack inside the Walmart, Miguel Angel Barajas-Ceballos, 22, is in the United States illegally and is a citizen of Mexico. He required an interpreter, court records show.
According to NBC15, just after 10:15 pm Monday, Barajas-Ceballos, of Sun Prairie, walked into the Sun Prairie Walmart and started stabbing the 36-year-old male several times in the head and back. The victim was stabbed five times.
“In reviewing the criminal complaint, the allegations are of almost the most severe criminal charges there are,” Commissioner Karie Cattanach said in court, according to the television station. “The injuries and conduct as described are multiple penetrating wounds to the victim’s body in what does appear to be a random attack at a Walmart, but for medical intervention we could be looking at the most severe charges. Luckily we’re not.” According to NBC 15, the victim said he was walking down an aisle when the suspect “came out of a side aisle and immediately stabbed him.”
Barajas-Ceballos allegedly fled the scene in a vehicle. Law enforcement attempted to stop the vehicle but Barajas-Ceballos failed to stop and led officers on a pursuit exceeding 100 mph, police say. The pursuit continued into Madison where the spike strips were deployed. Barajas-Ceballos crashed into a vehicle near the intersection of East Washington Avenue and Brearly Street, NBC15 reported.
The occupants in the other vehicle were not injured, according to police.
Sun Prairie Police said that the victim is recovering at a local hospital in stable but critical condition.
According to court records, Barajas-Ceballos was charged with Attempted 1st-degree Intentional Homicide and Eluding Police. Cash bond was set today at $300,000. The Dane County Jail now calls inmates “residents.” Barajas-Ceballos is currently listed as a “resident” of the Dane County Jail.
According to NBC15, the suspect’s attorney said in court that he is unemployed, has schizophrenia and lives with his family, and the prosecutor called the attack premeditated because he brought the knife from home. A competency evaluation was ordered.
While looking for information on this case, we went to the City of Sun Prairie’s Facebook page. There was no information posted about this incident, however, we came across a recent post that advertised a free immigration resource fair.
Wisconsin Right Now has previously reported:
-In Jan 2023, Juan Felix-Avendano is accused of killing a Special Olympian and severely injuring his elderly mother in a horrific drunk-driving crash in Milwaukee County. There is no immigration hold on him because the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Department refuses to cooperate with ICE.
-In Jan 2023, Israel Martinez Lopez is accused of killing his passenger in a fatal crash in the Town of Lisbon on Jan. 18, 2023. The criminal complaint said he was traveling 80 in a 45 mph zone, according to witnesses, and crossed the center line. He had no driver’s license, the complaint says. Victim and witness identification was sealed by the court, according to court records. Court Commissioner David Herring set bail at $200,000. A Spanish interpreter was needed.
-In Dec 2022, Ernest Regalado Rodriguez is accused of driving drunk and killing another motorist, 20-year-old nurse Johanna Pascoe in Caledonia, Wisconsin. He has an immigration hold in the Racine County Jail, according to records obtained by Wisconsin Right Now.
