New York college lacrosse captain stabs roommate; victim didn't realize he was knifed until his 'intestines were coming out'
A lacrosse team captain at St John's University in New York, who allegedly stabbed his roommate following an argument at an unsanctioned off-campus fraternity house, has now been arrested. Speaking to authorities, the victim, who somehow survived the assault, said he did not realize what had happened until he saw his own intestines sliding out of a gaping wound in his stomach, reports New York Daily News.
21-year-old Matthew Stockfeder was taken into custody on Wednesday on felony counts of assault with intent to cause serious physical injury and assault with intent to cause physical injury with a weapon.
While he was arraigned in the Queens Criminal Court on Wednesday, he is scheduled to appear next on December 5.
Charging documents from the Queen District Attorney’s office described how police responded to the fraternity house at 73-20 172nd Street in Queens around 12.30 am after reports of a stabbing. The victim, identified as Justin Corpolongo, 26, told officers he and Stockfeder, his roommate, had engaged in a verbal dispute that later turned violent.
According to Corpolongo, Stockfeder tried to punch him multiple times. At some point during the fight, he felt a sharp pain in his abdomen and realized he was bleeding profusely. The victim had to be rushed to New York-Presbyterian Queens Hospital, where doctors performed surgery to reconnect his small intestine and stitch up a small cut to the left side of his abdomen.
Speaking to police, one of the doctors said Corpolongo's knife wound was at least four to five inches deep in his abdomen. The dispute between Stockfeder and Corpolongo reportedly started on Monday after the latter came home from work and told his roommate to turn down the music, which was playing too loudly.
Stockfeder and a third roommate subsequently left the residence to watch Monday Night Football at a nearby fraternity house. Once there, the 21-year-old lacrosse captain sent a barrage of mocking texts to Corpolongo.
The St John's alum arrived at the frat house around midnight and confronted Stockfeder about the messages, thus setting off the violent altercation.
Speaking to police, Corpolongo recalled how he didn't realize he had been stabbed until his "intestines were coming out."
Meanwhile, St John's spokesman Brian Brown said the university is fully cooperating with the investigation, noting the incident had not taken place within the campus and was at an "off-campus location, not owned by the University."
Stockfeder graduated from Walt Whitman High School in Melville, New York, where he played as a three-year starter and two-year captain in midfield. In 2016, he was named as one of Long Island Newsday's Top 100 Lacrosse Players, and was All-County and All-League in 2015 and 2016 respectively.