Pocatello man charged in park stabbing
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POCATELLO — A man police say stabbed another man during an argument at Caldwell Park faces a felony charge.
Vidal Louis Goins, 45, of Pocatello, has been charged with aggravated battery, court records show.
Pocatello police responded to reports of a stabbing at Caldwell Park around 8 p.m. April 24, according to an affidavit of probable cause. The caller told officers he was stabbed by Goins and described him.
Upon arrival, officers found the victim, noting he had a “large amount of blood around his abdomen.”
While some officers tended to the victim, others searched the area for Goins, finding him on the 300 block of East Center Street.
Officers asked Goins to explain what happened. He allegedly said that the victim and another person were making verbal threats toward him, so he stabbed the victim. After he was arrested, Goins told officers that another person at the scene punched him in the face multiple times. Officers noted in reports that Goins did not have any injuries consistent with being punched in the face.
Goins was examined by Pocatello EMS, who could not find any injuries to his face, the affidavit says.
Because there was no evidence of him being hurt and the fact that he admitted to stabbing the victim without ever saying the victim or the other person with the victim displayed a weapon, officers arrested Goins.
He was taken to Bannock County Jail, where he is being held on a $40,000 bond.
Police reports do not indicate whether the victim required medical attention.
Though Goins has been charged with this crime, it does not necessarily mean he committed it. Everyone is presumed innocent until they are proven guilty.
If he is found guilty, Goins would face up to 15 years in prison.