NEW BERN, N.C. – Three children – ages 1, 5, and 12 – were stabbed to death and two other people were wounded in an attack in a Burmese community in eastern North Carolina, police said today.
The suspect, 18-year-old Eh Lar Doh Htoo, is charged with assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, and other charges are expected. Htoo knew the victims but they weren’t related, New Bern police Lt. Ronda Allen said. A language barrier was affecting the investigation, she said.
Police did not release the victims’ names or a possible motive.
Htoo was expected to appear in court in New Bern on Thursday. Police said they did not know whether Htoo had an attorney yet.
About 11 p.m. Tuesday, officers were called to a report of a person with a knife, Allen said. The officers entered the home and found the injured and two of the dead children. A third child died at a hospital, Allen said.