A man who repeatedly stabbed and seriously wounded a 71-year-old man at an El Cajon trolley station was sentenced Thursday to seven years to life in state prison.
Israel Valdivia, 27, was convicted by an El Cajon Superior Court jury earlier this year of attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon for attacking the victim in November 2021.
The victim and Valdivia were strangers to one another, police said.
Prosecutors said that when the victim got off a trolley while on his way to work, Valdivia approached and stabbed him multiple times, nearly severing the man’s ear. After the man collapsed to the ground, Valdivia kicked him, then ran, prosecutors said.
Valdvidia was arrested in Texas later that month. At the time of the stabbing, Valdivia was wanted for violating probation in connection with a separate assault with a deadly weapon conviction.
In a statement released after the sentencing, District Attorney Summer Stephan said, “This was a vicious, unprovoked attack on a vulnerable older man who was simply exiting the trolley to go to work. Today’s sentence brings a measure of justice to the victim and to the community at large.”
