Stabbing suspect leads Canton police officers on a chase, ending in a crash
By: -----
Stow, OH - The Ohio State Highway Patrol says troopers arrested a Canton man Tuesday night who is accused of shooting at them and taking off on a chase that eventually ended in a Stow neighborhood.
Troopers say they got involved when the U.S. Marshal Service issued a be-on-the-lookout for Julius Edwards, 39, who was wanted in connection with an attempted murder Tuesday morning in Canton.
Canton police report states officers were called around 6 a.m. to a home on 15th Street SW after a mother reported her daughter was stabbed by her boyfriend.
Officers arrived to find the victim, a 33-year-old Canton woman, stabbed 15 times and the home covered in blood, according to the report.
Canton police said in the report that Edwards had fled the scene, and there was a trail of blood leading to the driveway, leading officers to suspect he was behind the wheel.
First responders rushed the victim, who was conscious but unable to provide information, to Aultman Hospital for treatment, according to the report.
The following statement was given from the victim’s family:
"On behalf of our family, we are incredibly grateful to the officers of the Canton Police Department, the Ohio State Highway Patrol, the Stow Police Department, the U.S. Marshals Service, and every other agency that assisted in apprehending Julius Edwards. We appreciate their professionalism, courage, and commitment to apprehend him.
We are also deeply grateful to the EMS personnel, emergency room staff, trauma surgeons, nurses, and every medical professional who responded so quickly and fought to save my niece’s life. Their skill, compassion, and dedication have meant more to our family than words can express. We will never forget the care they have shown during this unimaginable time."
-Family of the victim
As officers collected evidence on scene, a voice which identified itself as Edwards reportedly came over a doorbell camera and stated he wanted to kill the victim and tried to do so, the report states. He reportedly believed she was dead.
According to the highway patrol’s release, Flock traffic surveillance cameras got a hit on the vehicle Edwards was driving around 7:30 p.m. Tuesday on Darrow Road in Hudson.
Troopers say they tried to pull the vehicle over, but it took off, leading them on a pursuit.
Edwards allegedly didn’t stop at a red light at Terex Road, causing a serious crash with multiple victims.
He took off on foot, shooting at a trooper as he fled from the scene. The trooper returned fire, according to the release.
Around 8:30 p.m., troopers say they saw Edwards driving a stolen silver Chrysler Town & Country that he had carjacked.
They tried to pull him over again, but he took off, according to the release, leading multiple police agencies on another chase that lasted around 10 minutes.
At one point, the pursuit went onto the grounds of Fox Den Golf Course and eventually into a Stow neighborhood, where Edwards crashed into a Summit Metro Parks cruiser, causing it to roll over in a yard near Saybrooke Boulevard and Bunker Lane.
Troopers say the Metro Parks officer suffered minor injuries.
Neighbors told 19 News reporter Vasi Prokos that they were watching TV when they heard a crash and sirens, looked outside, and saw several police cars and police running through the yard.
Edwards exited the vehicle, attempted to flee, but was arrested by Stow Police.
He is currently locked up in the Summit County Jail.