NEW BERN, N.C. — Three children — ages 1, 5, and 12 — were stabbed to death and two other people were hurt in an attack at a home in eastern North Carolina, police said Wednesday.
An 18-year-old is charged with assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, and other charges are expected, officials said.
The suspect and victims knew each other but weren’t related, New Bern police Lt. Ronda Allen said. All are Burmese, she said, and a language barrier was affecting the investigation.
Police identified the suspect as Eh Lar Doh Htoo but did not release the names of the victims or any possible motive. Htoo was expected to appear in court in New Bern on Thursday.
Police said they did not know whether he had an attorney yet.
About 11 p.m. Tuesday, officers were called to a report of a person with a knife, Allen said. The officers entered the home and found the dead and injured.
Two of the children were already dead and a third died at a hospital, she said.
The two who were wounded were another juvenile and an adult, Allen said. They were treated and released from a hospital.
New Bern, a town of 30,000, is a picturesque town on the water. It draws tourists from around the state and region and is known for being the birthplace of Pepsi and the colonial capital of North Carolina.