One person is dead after a stabbing on the campus of Sonoma State University, and one person has been arrested.
Students tell KRON4 the incident has shaken their sense of safety at school.
“I think we have the person who did the stabbing,” Petaluma police Lt. Tim Lyons said. “This happened inside the apartment. Somebody was arrested for it, so we are charging somebody with murder”
The person has been identified as 19-year-old Tyler Bratton of Santa Rosa. Petaluma police allege that Bratton stabbed to death a 26-year-old man inside a dorm on the campus of Sonoma State University shortly before 7:30 p.m. Sunday
“We don’t have a motivation right now,” Lt. Lyons said. “That is what we are trying to determine.”
Petaluma police say although the incident happened on-campus, neither the suspect nor the stabbing victim is a Sonoma State student.
Both men appear to have been visiting a female student living in the dorm.
“We don’t believe this was a random act,” Lyons said. “Everybody involved knew each other.”
One student lives in the dorm next door. She describes coming across her neighbor and the stabbing suspect.
She asked not to reveal her identity
“I was just walking back from the library and saw the guy, and he had blood covering both of his hands and I saw the girl,” the woman said. “She looked panicked. They were both sitting on the floor, and I just asked them if everything was OK because I thought somebody might have fallen and split their knee or something, and she said no she was not OK and I saw the knife on the ground, and I kind of figured there was something else going on.”
A dormmate also commented on the incident.
“There were some complaints, yes, about the person living in the room and who they were bringing into our house and what they were all doing,” she said.
In fact, the roommate, who also asked that we conceal her identity, actually lives inside of the dorm where the stabbing occurred.
She says she feared for her safety and reported that to the university police.
“They just said that they can’t doing anything because they don’t have a reason why they should go in there, they don’t have any proof, but I feel like us telling them multiple times is enough proof to at least trying to go in there and at least talk to her,” the dormmate said.
KRON4 reached out to the university spokesperson to see what they have to say about this. We are waiting for their response.
The identity of the victim is being withheld pending notification of next of kin.