SPRING VALLEY MAN ATTACKED BY SON WITH SAMURAI SWORD

December 29, 2010 (Spring Valley) – John Cahan, 39, pled not guilty to charges of elder abuse, first-degree burglary and assault with a deadly weapon. He is accused of walking into his father’s bedroom on Terrace Sprio in Spring Valley on December 26th and attacking him with a samurai sword.

According to ECM news partner 10 news, Cahan allegedly awoke his father, 69, and demanded that he hold out a hand, which Cahan threatened to cut off.
 

“Cahan swung the sword several times over his father and then brought it down, striking his lower leg,” Sheriff’s Sgt. Mark Varnau has stated. “The blad cut the victim’s leg, causing a potentially life-threatening wound.” Cahan left the room but later returned to try and stop the bleeding. He waited 90 minutes before calling medics and claimed that his father had accidentally injured himself while sleepwalking, according to Varnau.
 

The victim was taken to Sharp Memorial Hospital in critical condition. His name has not been released, however he identified his son as the attacker who caused the injury. No motive has been disclosed, Varnau said.