Support for LAist comes from
Made of L.A.
Stay Connected

Share This

This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.

This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.

News

Police Arrest Gas Siphoner Who Stabbed Man in the Neck With a Pen

joseph-beltran.jpg
Joseph Beltran (Photo courtesy LASD)
Our June member drive is live: protect this resource!
Right now, we need your help during our short June member drive to keep the local news you read here every day going. This has been a challenging year, but with your help, we can get one step closer to closing our budget gap. Today, put a dollar value on the trustworthy reporting you rely on all year long. We can't hold those in power accountable and uplift voices from the community without your partnership.

Authorities now have in custody a 22-year-old man suspected of stabbing a man in the neck with a pen. The suspect, Joseph Carlos Beltran of Castaic, had been siphoning gas from a vehicle in Santa Clarita when the victim confronted him to ask if the car belonged to him.

In response, Beltran allegedly asked why the man needed to know, then stabbed the man in the neck with a pen.

The victim was not seriously injured. Beltran fled the scene, and authorities notified the public they were looking for him.

Beltran was arrested late Tuesday night in Palmdale while being detained by authorities for an unspecified reason, according to City News Service. He was arrested when sheriff's deputies learned of the outstanding arrest warrant for the September 5 Santa Clarita pen attack.

Most Read