Man Accused In Deadly South Bay Crime Spree Charged With Murder

SAN JOSE, CA — A man accused of a rampage that took the lives of three people and injured many others in the South Bay last week has been charged with multiple counts of murder and attempted murder, the Santa Clara District Attorney's Office said Tuesday.

Kevin Parkourana, a 31-year-old San Jose resident, is accused of what San Jose Police Chief Anthony Mata called a "violent crime spree" that started Thursday afternoon in San Jose and ended hours later with him being taken into custody in Milpitas.

According to prosecutors, within three hours, Parkourana allegedly carjacked two people, stabbed four with a kitchen knife and struck seven with carjacked vehicles, including an elderly couple standing outside of their home.

The couple and an a 26-year-old Milpitas victim died. In all, the suspect is accused of leaving 10 people dead or wounded before police located him hiding in a delivery van outside of a Smart & Final store.

Parkourana was arraigned Tuesday and is charged with three murders and multiple counts of attempted murder, prosecutors said. If convicted, he faces life in prison.

District Attorney Jeff Rosen called for creating a locked mental health facility within the county's planned new jail.

"Perhaps there is no way to predict tragedies such as these," said Rosen in a statement released by his office Tuesday. "We can all agree that there should be safer options for judges to choose."

Officers had initially responded at 3:11 p.m. Thursday to a stabbing and carjacking reported in the area of Kooser Road and Dellwood Way, where Parkourana allegedly stabbed a man and stole his tan Honda minivan, police said.

About 20 minutes later, another stabbing and carjacking was reported, this time in a parking lot in the 1800 block of Hillsdale Avenue, where Parkourana is accused of stabbing someone and stealing his burgundy Honda Pilot, then struck a pedestrian in the parking lot before fleeing, according to police.

At about 4 p.m., another stabbing occurred in the area of 10th and Santa Clara streets. The victims in all three cases were stabilized after their injuries, police said.

At 4:12 p.m., Parkourana then allegedly used the stolen vehicle to intentionally strike three pedestrians in the area of South 16th and East Santa Clara streets, killing two of them, then shortly afterward struck someone on a motorized scooter in the 2200 block of Alum Rock Avenue, police said.

At about 4:30 p.m., another stabbing occurred in a parking lot on Jacklin Road in Milpitas, and police quickly determined it was related to the various stabbings and carjackings in San Jose. The victim in this case, a 26-year-old man, was taken to a hospital where he died shortly after 5 p.m., said Jared Hernandez, the Milpitas police chief.

San Jose and Milpitas police, while searching for the suspect, also worked to protect a graduation ceremony that was taking place nearby at Milpitas High School.

With the help of a police canine crew and officers searching in a helicopter, Parkourana eventually emerged on Arizona Avenue and was taken into custody around 6:15 p.m., Hernandez said.

Parkourana is in Santa Clara County Jail on suspicion of the various crimes, and was on active probation at the time, with several felony and misdemeanor convictions on his record, Mata said.

San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan on Thursday said on Twitter, "I am sickened by the senseless violence that took place in our city tonight. There are no words that can convey how sorry I am to the victims' loved ones whose lives have been forever altered. San Jose mourns with you."

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