Women fight off knife-wielding maintenance man inside their apartment, Texas cops say

Two women are wounded but alive in El Paso, Texas, after fighting off a knife-wielding maintenance man who entered their apartment and attacked them Saturday morning, police said.

Victor Ruben Tejada, 48, worked at the apartment complex on the city’s east side, and entered the victim’s unit without permission around 7 a.m.

Once inside, Tejada walked into the bedroom of a 25-year-old woman and attacked her, police said.

The woman struggled and screamed as he tried to strangle her, police said, and a 19-year-old woman elsewhere in the apartment came running to help.

Police said Tejada stabbed both women as they fought.

Eventually, they escaped the apartment and rushed down the hall knocking on neighbors’ doors.

Tejada ran from the scene and fled into Mexico, but was arrested by U.S. Marshals when he tried to cross back over through the Ysleta Port of Entry on Sunday night, police said.

He was booked into the El Paso County Jail on two charges of burglary of habitation with intent to commit another felony. His bond is set at $500,000.

This story was originally published October 5, 2021 at 8:24 AM with the headline "Women fight off knife-wielding maintenance man inside their apartment, Texas cops say."