EDGEWOOD, PA – A pediatric critical care doctor was killed and his wife was critically injured after a man allegedly broke into their Edgewood home and attacked them while they were sleeping, according to Allegheny County police.
Officers were called to the home shortly after 12:30 a.m. Thursday and found Dr. Idris Evans and his wife with multiple stab wounds. Police said Evans, 46, was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The couple’s two children, ages 8 and 12, were in the house at the time but escaped unharmed after their mother told them to run to a neighbor’s home, police and a criminal complaint said.
Police say the attack began in the couple’s third-floor bedroom
According to the criminal complaint, Evans and his wife were asleep in a third-floor bedroom when they woke up to a man in his underwear stabbing them with a kitchen knife. Authorities described the scene as extremely violent.
Investigators said bedroom furniture and mirrors were broken during the attack. A kitchen knife with apparent blood on it was later found in the third-floor bathroom, the complaint said.
Police said they believe the suspect got into the house through a back window. The home is in Edgewood, a borough just outside Pittsburgh.
Suspect Elijah Hemingway was found behind a nearby house
Police identified the suspect as 32-year-old Elijah Hemingway of Pittsburgh. They said a K9 unit found him behind a nearby house after the attack.
When he was detained, Hemingway had lacerations to one hand and was taken to a hospital, police said. He now faces charges including homicide, aggravated assault and burglary.
Officials said the case remains under investigation. Prosecutors have not publicly described a motive, and police have not said whether the suspect and victims had any prior relationship beyond what Hemingway told investigators.
Wife says she heard the attacker say Elijah
In the complaint, Evans’s wife said her husband called the attacker Elijah during the assault, although she said she did not know the man. She also told investigators the attacker repeatedly made statements about God and about being God.
Hemingway gave detectives a different account, saying Evans invited him into the home and let him inside. The complaint says he did not explain how he met the doctor.
He also claimed Evans attacked him with a “Michael Myers” style knife and that a struggle followed. Hemingway told police he was stabbed in the back, but investigators said his injuries were limited to his hands.
Dr. Evans worked at UPMC Children’s Hospital and the University of Pittsburgh
A University of Pittsburgh Medical Center spokesperson said Evans worked as a pediatric critical care doctor at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh and served as an assistant professor of critical care medicine at the University of Pittsburgh.
In a statement, the spokesperson called him a dedicated caregiver and a valued member of the hospital and university communities. The statement added that the organization’s thoughts are with his family, loved ones and colleagues.
Evans’s death has left the hospital and university communities facing the loss of a physician who cared for seriously ill children. Police have not said what led to the attack.
Court case moves forward after overnight killing in Allegheny County
The fatal stabbing adds another violent case to Allegheny County’s criminal docket as investigators continue to sort out what happened inside the house. Police said the evidence includes the knife recovered in the bathroom and the injuries Hemingway had when officers found him.
For now, the key facts are the same: Evans died after the attack, his wife remained hospitalized in critical condition, and the couple’s children got out safely. Police said Hemingway is in custody and is being held on the charges filed in the case.
Authorities have not released additional details about the timing of any court hearings or whether more charges are expected.
