UPDATE: Albert Lea man suspected of stabbing found incompetent to stand trial

(ABC 6 News) – Efren Estrada was found incompetent to stand trial in his second stabbing case Friday, Jan. 12.

According to court documents filed Jan. 12, the Freeborn County Attorney charged the Department of Human Services with monitoring Estrada’s condition and evaluating whether he should be civilly committed.

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(ABC 6 News) – A man accused of stabbing another man in a Garfield Avenue residence Tuesday, Jan. 9 appeared in court to face a 2nd-degree assault charge.

RELATED: Man arrested after alleged stabbing incident in Albert Lea – ABC 6 News – kaaltv.com

According to court documents filed Thursday, Jan. 11, Efren Estrada was arrested after a person at the Garfield Avenue home called dispatch to say someone had been stabbed in the leg with a kitchen knife.

An Albert Lea police office made contact with two men standing in the driveway, with a trail of blood leading from the home to the victim in the driveway, according to court documents.

Court documents allege that the stabbing victim was bleeding heavily, and was “lethargic and in shock.”

The men told the officer the stabbing suspect was still in the home, and a SWAT team responded to the residence.

The second man outside the home told law enforcement that he’d seen Estrada with a knife in his hand at the home and had been ordered to get out.
When he did, he found the other man with the wound, according to court documents.

Estrada is currently held without bail or bond, and did not have another hearing scheduled Thursday afternoon.

2023 knife incident

In April of 2023, Albert Lea police responded to a residence on Garfield Avenue where Estrada had allegedly threatened a man with a knife.

The man told police he lived at the residence and was in the bathroom when Estrada began pounding on the door and asking who was in the residence.

According to court documents, the man told police Estrada punched and kicked the door around 20 times before stabbing the door, yellling that he was going to stab and kill the other man.

Police noted that the man’s hand was bloodied, which he said had happened when Estrada was trying to force his way through the door.

According to court documents, police saw puncture marks on the door and a large hole in the bottom, as well as a knife with white paint from the door on it.

Estrada was charged with 2nd-degree assault with a weapon and terroristic threats. The case was not closed, however, as judge Christy Hormann filed an order for a competency evaluation in October of 2023.

The evaluation was completed in November, but the results were not publicly posted. Estrada was scheduled for a review hearing, in which a court usually assesses whether someone previously considered incapable of participating in their own defense has regained that ability.

He appeared in Freeborn County Court Thursday, Jan. 11, for a review hearing.