(Council Bluffs) A transient man was arrested following a stabbing incident in Council Bluffs Thursday.
The Council Bluffs Police Department says at approximately 12:55 PM, Council Bluffs Police responded to a reported stabbing under the 35th Avenue train overpass, just east of McMullen Ford (3401 S. Expressway). Contract workers Joseph Bates, 51, and David Wicker, 40, both of Council Bluffs, heard a woman screaming in apparent distress and attempted to intervene in a disturbance between her and a male suspect. After the woman declined assistance, Bates and Wicker began walking away. The male suspect then kicked Bates in the head, tackled him, and cut him with a knife in the arm during the ensuing struggle. Wicker intervened to disarm the assailant, who discarded the knife near the railroad tracks and fled on foot.
Officers quickly located and arrested the suspect, identified as Joseph Muellner, 34 (transient). Muellner was charged with Attempted Murder.
Bates was transported to Bergan Mercy Hospital for treatment of an arm laceration.
Anyone who has information that could assist in this investigation is encouraged to contact the Council Bluffs Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Division at 712-328-4728 or to remain anonymous, they may call CrimeStoppers at 712-328-7867. On-line tips can be submitted at: https://www.councilbluffs-ia.gov/FormCenter/Police-Department-2/Online-CrimeStoppers-Tip-70
The public is reminded that the charges are not evidence against the defendants, and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
