Apple River stabbing suspect pleads ‘not guilty’
Nicolae Miu Mugshot / Courtesy: St. Croix County Sheriff's Office
(ABC 6 News) – A Minnesota man accused of stabbing multiple people, including one fatally, on the Apple River in Somerset, Wisconsin on July 30, returned to the courtroom on Thursday.
Nicolae Miu, 52, faces one count of first-degree intentional homicide and four counts of attempted first-degree intentional homicide.
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Miu entered a ‘not guilty’ plea during Thursday’s court appearance in St. Croix County Circuit Court.
Miu was in court last week and the court found probable cause that he committed a felony, and that there was enough evidence for a trial.
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Miu is accused of stabbing five people who were tubing on the Apple River on Saturday, July 30: a 17-year-old Stillwater boy; two men ages 20 and 22 from Luck, Wisconsin; a 22-year-old Man from Elk River and a 24-year-old Burnsville woman.
The 17-year-old, identified by family members as Isaac Schuman, died from his injuries.
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According to a criminal complaint, Miu got in a confrontation while away from his group, and claimed he was looking for a lost phone.
The documents say witnesses saw Miu punch or slap a woman, and then punched him, causing him to fall into the river.
The complaint goes on to say that’s when Miu started stabbing people around him.
Miu claims it was self defense, but investigators say video from the scene shows there was a chance for him to leave the fight.
“It appears that victim one pushes Miu, and there’s another stabbing motion, his hand comes back… there’s blood on the upper portion of his hand and the top of the knife,” said St. Croix County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Brandie Hart.
A judge has set a November 1 status hearing to learn how both sides plan to progress with their cases.