Boy, 9, dies after being stabbed by a 12-year-old

Associated Press

KENTWOOD, MICH.

A 9-year-old boy repeatedly stabbed by a 12-year-old at a Michigan playground ran screaming to his home and collapsed bleeding on his porch before dying at a hospital a short time later, witnesses and police said Tuesday.

Witnesses said the 12-year-old boy went to a nearby home after the Monday evening attack on Michael Conner Verkerke, called 911 and calmly turned himself in, then tried to flag down officers when they arrived.

The 12-year-old pleaded not guilty to a murder charge in juvenile court Tuesday, according to his attorney. He was ordered held in a juvenile detention center until a hearing next week. A motive for the attack still was being investigated, Kentwood Police Chief Thomas Hillen said.

Witnesses told investigators that four children were playing when one of them, for unknown reasons, pulled a knife and stabbed the boy in the back.

Tiffany Armijo said her son was playing with Michael before he was attacked and that she had never seen the 12-year-old before.

“He was playing with Michael and his brother, and my kid, too,” she said, her voice breaking.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for next Wednesday.