photo credit: Sundry Photography // Shutterstock
As two sisters, Lahtifa, 26, and Nia Wilson, 18, were exiting a train in Oakland on Sunday night, returning from a family gathering, a man attacked them, killing one and injuring another. On monday night, the attacker and paroled felon, John Cowell, was arrested.
According to Fox News, surveillance video on the train and at the station’s platform showed John Cowell, 27, had been riding the same car as the sisters, but they did not interact. As the ladies stepped onto the platform, Cowell attacked them and fled the scene. Cameras show the man running through the parking lot stripping off his clothes. The knife detective believed was used, was found at a nearby construction site.
A man who witnessed the attack said the suspect came out of nowhere and slit Nia’s throat while she was sitting down in the train and that he stabbed her sister as she tried to stop him. Cowell had just competed a jail sentence for a 2016 robbery. An investigation is currently on-going. Cowell is white. The sisters are black.
Murder suspect now in custody! BART Police took him into custody at Pleasant Hill BART. Full details to come and Chief availability at Rockridge BART at 8pm. Thank you BPD and thank riders for keeping your eye out!! https://t.co/OxZmOw2OkI
— BART (@SFBART) July 24, 2018