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ST. CROIX COUNTY, Wis. (FOX 9) - The man accused of fatally stabbing a teenager and injuring four others while tubing on the Apple River in Wisconsin is making an appearance in court on Friday.
Nicolae Miu, 54, is facing charges of first-degree intentional homicide for the death of 17-year-old Isaac Schuman and multiple counts of attempted first-degree intentional homicide for his alleged role in the stabbings on July 30, 2022.
Miu, a mechanical engineer from Prior Lake, Minnesota, is scheduled to appear in St. Croix County court at 1:30 p.m. for a pretrial hearing. The hearing can be watched in the player above, on FOX 9’s YouTube channel, fox9.com, and FOX Local.
Apple River stabbing
According to court records, the stabbing took place on the Apple River near the Sunrise Bridge in Somerset, Wisconsin, which allegedly started after Miu was apparently looking for a friend's cell phone in the river but was confronted by tubers who said he was acting sketchy.
The encounter escalated, and he apparently punched a female on the left side of her face before Miu was punched, eventually leading to the stabbing.
Witnesses began calling 911 at 3:47 p.m. on July 30, which indicated there were potentially four or five victims with wounds to the mid to upper body.
RELATED: Apple River stabbing suspect: Who is Nicolae Miu?
A 24-year-old woman from Burnsville, Minnesota, a 20-year-old and 22-year-old man from Luck, Wisconsin, and a 22-year-old man from Elk River, Minnesota, were injured in the attack. But, 17-year-old Schuman died from his injuries.
According to the criminal complaint, Miu claimed the attack was self-defense. He said he was "so fearful" for his safety, adding he wasn't sure what the people in the river were going to do to him, and "everything happened so fast."
Miu has another hearing scheduled on Wednesday, March 6, and his trial is set to begin on April 1, according to court records.
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Apple River stabbings: Will the suspect's self-defense claims hold up at trial?
The man charged in the stabbing attack on Apple River in Wisconsin is claiming he acted in self defense. Tuesday, we spoke with attorneys to gauge whether that defense might have legs at trial.
This is a developing story, check back for updates.