2nd machete attack arrest made
First Posted:
Federal marshals Thursday in New Jersey arrested the man wanted in the machete attack of a 15-year-old GAR student near the high school last month.
The marshals took Juan Borbon, 20, into custody without incident in Passaic.
Borbon was committed to the Passaic County Jail in Paterson, said Bill Maer, a spokesman for the Passaic County Sheriff’s Office.
“He was brought in by the U.S. Marshals for the (Passaic County Sheriff’s Office) Warrant squad,” said Maer in an e-mail.
Borbon is charged as a fugitive and is held without bail. “(He) will not be extradited until he is seen by a judge in Superior Court for an extradition hearing,” said Maer, adding no court date has been set.
When returned to Luzerne County, Borbon faces a number of charges including aggravated and simple assault and assault with a deadly weapon for allegedly swinging the machete during a fight and nearly severing the left hand of Marquis Allen of Wilkes-Barre. Law enforcement authorities are investigating whether the fight was gang related.
Allen was struck when he tried to help a youth knocked down in the fight, police said. He underwent emergency surgery at Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center, Plains Township, and is recovering from the injury.
Allen’s mother, Darlene Burt, reacted happily to news of the arrest.
“As you can imagine we are just overjoyed that they actually have captured him in the time frame in which it was. I definitely feel safer having my children out,” said Burt.
On Feb. 17, police arrested a 16-year-old boy as an accomplice and charged him as an adult in the attack on Allen. Yansy Abreu of Wyoming Street, Wilkes-Barre, is being held in the Luzerne County Correctional Facility for lack of $250,000 bail.
At his arraignment, Abreu said he was from the Dominican Republic and moved to the area about a year ago. He was enrolled at the Alternative Learning Center in Plains Township but did not attend classes.
In arrest papers filed against Abreu, police said: Abreu and his mother went to police headquarters the night of the attack. He told police a male he knew only as “Juancito” jumped out of a van and struck the victim with a machete. The attacker was a Dominican who lived in New Jersey with his wife and child, and also had a sister who attended GAR.
But in the arrest papers, a witness to the attack contradicted Abreu’s statement, saying Abreu had book bag with a knife with black handle sticking out of it. The witness said Abreu appeared upset because Borbon took the book bag and chased after a group of black youths on Lehigh Street. As Allen tried to help one of the youths Borbon came from behind and struck his wrist. Allen ran to a nearby police car and Borbon looked around before fleeing down Lehigh Street toward South Hancock Street
Police recovered a black-handled machete in the area of 201 Lehigh St. on Feb. 14. Three days later, police used a photo of Borbon from Wyoming Valley West High School in an array presented to the witness and Abreu. They picked out Borbon’s photo and identified him as the attacker, police said.
Wilkes-Barre police asked for assistance on Feb. 22, said U. S. Marshal Martin Pane of Scranton. Deputies from his office developed information on Borbon’s whereabouts and sought assistance from the marshal’s New York/New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force.
