Edina Man Charged with Attempted Murder After Stabbing Mother at Park

Jul 30

A Minneapolis man is charged with attempted murder after allegedly stabbing his mother at a public park in Edina on Sunday.

Dimitrius Aurelio Favaro, 31, is accused of stabbing his mother during what investigators say was a premeditated attack at Arneson Acres Park around 6:30 p.m.

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Favaro told officers he had planned to kill both her and himself. He faces one felony count of first-degree attempted murder with a dangerous weapon.

According to the charges filed, Edina officers were dispatched to the park where they found Favaro’s mother lying in a landscape walkway, bleeding heavily and with multiple visible stab wounds. She had called her husband—Favaro’s stepfather—just before police arrived, telling him she had been stabbed by her son and believed she was dying.

Officers found her covered in blood and pale, with a pool of blood forming near her head. She had injuries to her neck, leg and hands, including what appeared to be defensive wounds between her thumbs and index fingers. She was able to tell police that it was Favaro who had stabbed her and that he used a pocketknife. She was taken to a hospital and was intubated due to the extent of her injuries.

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Shortly after officers arrived at the park, Edina police received another call from a nearby residence on West Shore Drive about a man in a yellow shirt who was bleeding from his torso and drinking from a garden hose. Responding officers found Favaro on the ground in the yard and located a pocket knife nearby with blood on the blade.

When asked what had happened, Favaro told officers, “I stabbed myself and I stabbed my mother to death and f***ing I stabbed her because I can’t f***ing make sense of how to f***ing get away from these f***ing places.” In a later interview at the hospital, Favaro admitted to planning the stabbing and told an investigator that his intention was to kill his mother and then himself. He said he first tried to choke her, heard her neck “crack,” and stabbed her in the neck to stop her from screaming.

Two witnesses told investigators they had seen a man in a yellow shirt walking quickly from the direction of the park toward West Shore Drive shortly before officers found Favaro there.

The victim’s husband told police that Favaro had mental health issues and said that two days earlier, Favaro had pushed and hit his mother during a visit and taken her phone. The husband was able to get the phone back, and his wife had planned to take Favaro to the hospital the day she was stabbed.

Medical staff documented that the woman underwent surgery for five stab wounds to her neck. She also sustained five stab wounds to her hands, a laceration on her chin and another on her thigh. She remained hospitalized at of the time charges were filed.

Favaro faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted of attempted first-degree murder. Favaro was released from the hospital on Tuesday and taken into custody. He was set to make an initial court appearance on Wedneday afternoon.

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