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Iraq Veteran Charged In St. Petersburg Stabbing

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By STEPHEN THOMPSON | The Tampa Tribune

Published: March 27, 2009

Updated: 03/27/2009 02:09 pm

A U.S. serviceman who recently returned from the war in Iraq was arrested Thursday night after St. Petersburg police found him stabbing another person with a broken piece of a lamp, St. Petersburg police said.

Hector Luis Ortiz, 23, was charged with attempted murder and possession of marijuana. He was booked into the Pinellas County Jail shortly after midnight today and was being held on $100,150 bond.

Family members told police Ortiz was having difficulty adjusting to civilian life, and before the stabbing, he was seen in an apartment building making threats of violence that were directed at no one in particular, said St. Petersburg police spokesman George Kajtsa.

After the alleged stabbing, he said he couldn't remember what he just did, Kajtsa said.

Initially, Ortiz's sister called, saying her brother was having an outburst, Kajtsa said. But when officers arrived at the home of Ortiz's mother, the mother said he was fine. Then, however, Ortiz's brother-in-law reported Ortiz was in the hallway of an apartment building at 262 S.W. Monroe Circle N. armed with what was first believed to be a knife.

When police arrived, they found people running from the building saying someone was screaming inside, Kajtsa said. Two officers tracked the screaming to Apartment 4104, went inside and found Ortiz straddling the victim in bedroom and stabbing him, Kajtsa said.

At least one officer pulled out his weapon and pointed it at Ortiz, ordering him to drop the piece of broken lamp, Kajtsa said. Ortiz complied and was taken into custody.

The victim, Daniel Traum, 33, was taken to Bayfront Medical Center and was expected to survive his injuries. The attack occurred in his apartment, Kajtsa said.

Reporter Stephen Thompson can be reached at (727) 451-2336.

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