Property dispute escalates into fatal stabbing Sunday morning in Ukiah parking lot – The Mendocino Voice

UKIAH, 3/28/22 — A 63-year-old man was fatally stabbed in a Ukiah bank parking lot yesterday as part of an apparent property dispute, according to police.  Leslie Adelman, a 69-year-old resident of Ukiah,  was arrested at the scene and subsequently charged with murder. Adelman is scheduled to appear in Mendocino County Superior Court for arraignment before Judge Keith Faulder at 9 a.m. Wednesday.

The victim has been identified in public record, but The Mendocino Voice is withholding the decedent’s name until notification of next of kin can be confirmed. This story will be updated once that information can be made public. 

Officers with the Ukiah Police Department responded to Wells Fargo on South State Street just after 10 a.m. Sunday after a 911 call involving a man with a knife. When the first officer arrived on scene they observed Adelman holding a knife and walking away from the victim. The victim fell down shortly afterward. He’d suffered severe abdominal wounds, and would later be pronounced dead at Adventist Health Ukiah Valley hospital. 

The officer confronted Adelman, and after backup arrived, they took him into custody. Police say Adelman struggled and suffered moderate injuries during his arrest. The suspect was taken to the same hospital as his alleged victim for medical attention before getting booked into the Mendocino County Jail around 4 p.m.

Adelman has an extensive history with local law enforcement. He was charged with felony arson in 2017, although that charge was reduced to vandalism as part of a plea agreement, as well as felony resisting arrest in 2019. Adelman was sentenced to three years on probation in January 2020. He allegedly violated the terms of that probation, however, and was subsequently sentenced to two years in state prison that November. That was roughly 16 months ago, and though a date of release was not immediately available, public records show Adelman has been cited twice for littering since February. 

Sunday’s homicide marks at least the second one in Ukiah so far in 2022. Deborah Garner-Flicker, 55,  was found dead in her apartment in the 200 block of East Gobbi Street on March 22. Drew Price, 38, has been charged with murder in her death. Price is scheduled to appear before Judge Carly Dolan at 9 a.m. Thursday, April 7.

Source: mendovoice.com