1100 block of Lawson Ave. E. on Thursday, Oct. 20, 2022. Photo from Saint Paul Police Department

SAINT PAUL: Stabbing, two victims - 11xx Lawson Ave. W. - Officers are on scene of an apparent double-stabbing with possible fatal injuries inside a residence. Two victims have been found by officers, with both victims reportedly unresponsive.

32-year-old Joseph Francis Sandoval, II, was arrested just after the killings and is now formally charged with two counts of 2nd-degree murder.

Sandoval had three pending felony charges in Hennepin County for assault, burglary and theft in 2020 and 2021. Sandoval had been conditionally released on those charges after he was found incompetent in 2021.

According to court documents, police were called to the 1100 block of Lawson Ave. E. just before 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 20 after a man was reportedly screaming that someone had been killed inside a home.

Officers first on scene saw Sandoval leaving the home and walking toward the alley. He had blood on his cloths and lacerations to his face and hands. He also appeared to be under the influence of an unknown substance, the documents said.

TWITTER: Our initial thread on the double-homicide

Sandoval told officers outside the home that he had ingested fentanyl. He said he’d just moved into the sober house and didn’t know anyone there. Sandoval told officers that “two big guys” attacked him and “got those other guys,” referencing the two victims inside.

When police entered the home, they saw blood droplets in the kitchen and on the stairs leading to the basement. Lying in a pool of blood in the basement was a 40-year-old male victim who was unresponsive. Police found the other victim—a 56-year-old man—also unresponsive in a pool of blood in an upstairs bedroom.

Medics pronounced both men dead at the scene. Both victims had multiple lacerations and stab wounds, including “many” to the neck and head, the court documents reveal.

Officers found a bloody knife and a bloody hammer inside the home.

Police also spoke with a witness who was found “distressed” outside the home. He said he lived at the sober house and had tried to enter through the front door. Sandoval allegedly blocked the man and said it was “too messy” for him to come inside.

The witness went to a side door of the home and went into the kitchen. He reported seeing blood droplets, went downstairs and found one of the victims. The man told police he tried to escape the home and fought with Sandoval, who reportedly “had a crazed look in his eyes” and put the witness in a chokehold. He was able to break free, exit the home and ran to a neighbor’s house, telling them to call 911.