A 24-year-old man was stabbed on Sunday evening at the intersection of Milpas and Cota streets while calls to police dispatch reported a group of people fighting around 8:45 p.m. Responding officers found no one at the scene, police spokesperson Anthony Wagner said, but a man was admitted to Cottage hospital about a half-hour later with multiple non-life-threatening stab wounds. Wagner could not confirm that the incident was gang-related as the victim was not cooperating with police.
The traditional increase in police presence and enforcement around Santa Barbara’s week-long Fiesta, which begins Wednesday, has additional urgency this year, say longtime observers of the city scene. The Eastside of Santa Barbara was rocked by the fatal stabbing of Alberto Torres on June 1 near Cacique and Salinas streets; one of the accused is charged as a gang member.