A teenager is facing charges following the stabbing of a cab driver over the weekend.
Leduc Mounties rushed to a taxi parked on the roadside north of Nisku near Blackmud Creek around 2:30 a.m. Saturday.
The Edmonton driver had been stabbed once in the abdomen and once in the shoulder.
Police gave chase to the suspect, who fled on foot.
With the assistance of police dogs and a helicopter, the suspect was found in less than 10 minutes.
Kyle Theodore Ilkiw, 19, was remanded to custody and charged with aggravated assault, assault with a weapon, possession of a dangerous weapon, uttering threats, mischief and possession of a weapon while unauthorized.
“He is definitely known to police in Edmonton,” Leduc RCMP Const. John Powell said.
The driver sustained serious, yet non-life-threatening injuries and was released from hospital yesterday.
Cab driver safety has been under scrutiny over the past year, as the number of driver attacks has continued to rise.
Despite a decision by city council that made protective shields mandatory, the attacks continue. Nearly a dozen drivers have lost their lives on the job since the ’80s.
Powell said none of the attacks, including the most recent, appear to be connected.
Ilkiw makes his first court appearance in Leduc on Thursday.
