Man Arrested in Miami Springs Hotel Stabbing, Carjacking

A man accused of stabbing another man and stealing his car at a Miami Springs hotel earlier this month has been arrested, police said.

Raynel Gallego, 21, was arrested Tuesday on charges of attempted first-degree murder and carjacking in the Oct. 10 incident at the Days Inn at 4767 Northwest 36th Street, according to an arrest report.

According to the report, the victim told investigators he had been hanging out with Gallego and Gallego's girlfriend at the hotel when they got into an argument in the parking lot. At some point, Gallego stabbed the victim in the chest while the victim was sitting in the driver's seat of his car, the report said.

The victim fell to the ground and Gallego got into the driver's seat then drove off in the victim's car with his girlfriend in the passenger seat, the report said.

Paramedics rushed the victim to Jackson Memorial Hospital's Ryder Trauma Center, where he was treated for internal bleeding and a punctured lung, and placed on a ventilator. He was later able to identify Gallego as the man who stabbed him from a photo, the report said.

Gallego told investigators he thought the victim may have had a bat or gun so he stabbed him with his knife, the report said. Gallego also said he was going to take the victim to the hospital but he "freaked out" and fled in the victim's car, according to the report.

The victim's car was later found abandoned at a bakery, the report said.

Gallego was being held without bond Wednesday, jail records showed. Attorney information wasn't available.

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