Cops: Neighbor’s fingers severed with machete in fight involving coffee, vandalism claims
A dispute involving coffee, a machete, and alleged vehicle vandalism on the 1200 block of Daly Street left a South Philadelphia man with two severed fingers.
A dispute involving coffee, a machete, and alleged vehicle vandalism left a South Philadelphia man with two severed fingers Friday morning.
Tensions boiled over along the 1200 block of Daly Street about 6:30 a.m., when the man, 74, confronted his neighbor, 58, about vandalism to his vehicle that occurred on the block, police said.
As the argument escalated, the 74-year-old threw a cup of coffee at his neighbor.
The neighbor then went inside his house and returned with an 18-inch machete, police said. He allegedly swung the weapon at the 74-year-old, severing two fingers from his left hand and causing him to suffer a large cut to the left side of his head.
Officers responding to the scene saw a large amount of blood on the sidewalk and found the machete broken in the street, police said.
A neighbor who witnessed the fight handed one officer two human fingers and said they belonged to the victim, who had been seen walking toward 13th Street, blood pouring from his head.
He walked into nearby Methodist Hospital, where he was placed in critical condition.
The neighbor also advised officers that the 58-year-old suspect had gone inside a home on the block after the alleged attack. When officers knocked on the door, the suspect answered, covered in blood, police said.
He was taken into custody and transported to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital to be treated for cuts to his hands and legs. His identity was not immediately released because criminal charges against him had not yet been processed.