Off-Duty Fullerton Police Officer Stabbed By Assailant

FULLERTON (CBSLA) -- An off-duty Fullerton police officer was stabbed in Placentia Saturday afternoon, according to authorities.

The unidentified officer was conducting personal business around 3:30 p.m. when the attack occurred at a strip mall located at the intersection of Kraemer and Yorba Linda Boulevard.

The officer was attacked from behind in the strip mall's parking lot with some type of sharp object, authorities said.

Officials told KCAL9's Adrianna Weingold the suspect stabbed the officer several times in the abdomen.

"There wasn't any attempt at a theft or any sort of robbery," says Placentia Police Sgt. Bryce Angel. "It was just a random attack. The officer actually never saw the suspect's face. The suspect turned and ran from the scene  before the officer was able to recover from the injury."

The suspect was described as a male in his late teens or early 20s and wearing all dark clothing.

The officer was transported to a nearby hospital for treatment of his injuries -- described as superficial.  KCAL9's Adrianna Weingold said the officer was later transferred to a trauma center. He is expected to be okay.

The Fullerton Police Department, Orange County Sheriffs Department and Cal State Fullerton Police Department, made an extensive search of the area.

Officers detained and later arrested a parolee named James Carrera, a 19-year-old Placentia resident. Carrera was booked on an assault with a deadly weapon charge.

Police did not know if the officer was targeted but they said Carrera was out on parole for weapons violations and possibly knew the officer.

"The way the crime played out," Angel says, "it looks random, but the officer works very close to here so there is a possibility that they knew each other."

Anyone with information about this case is asked to call the Placentia Police Department at (714) 993-8146.