Police say a 63-year-old woman survived a night of horror, escaping from a 15-year-old neighbor who stabbed her before trying to drown her in a pond and asphyxiate her in her car.
The victim, identified by neighbors as Paula McMurrough, suffered multiple stab wounds, including one to her neck, before driving herself to Sturdy Memorial Hospital around 2:45 a.m. this morning, police said
She was transferred to Rhode Island Hospital in Providence with wounds that police described as "more than superficial but not life threatening." She was listed in stable condition, police said tonight.
The 15-year-old boy, whose name was not released because of his age, was arrested a short time later when he arrived home, Detective Sgt. Arthur Brillon said.
He was arraigned in Taunton Juvenile Court on several charges, including attempted murder, home invasion and kidnapping, Brillon said.
Police do not yet have a motive for the attack, which shocked even veteran investigators, and say the victim and suspect know each other.
The horrific ordeal began around 10 p.m. when the victim was startled by the boy inside her home at 91 Cumberland Ave., Brillon said. The boy attacked McMurrough, stabbing her several times on her body and neck, Brillon said.
The boy then took McMurrough against her will to a pond near the Seekonk line, where he dragged her from her car to the pond and attempted to drown her, Brillon said.