U.S. Marine stabbed to death during downtown brawl in Wilmington, North Carolina, USA.
NEWS:
A 21-year-old U.S. Marine stationed at Camp Lejeune died after being stabbed during a large late-night brawl in downtown Wilmington, North Carolina, in the early hours of Easter Sunday, April 5, 2026.
The Marine was identified as Lance Cpl. Daniel Montano. Military officials confirmed that he was an inventory management specialist assigned to 1st Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment at Camp Lejeune. His home of record was San Bernardino, California.
Police said officers responded shortly after 2 a.m. to reports of multiple fights in the 100 block of North Front Street. Two men were stabbed during one incident. Montano suffered a severe neck wound and later died from his injuries.
The video being published with this article shows the violent aftermath of the street fight. Multiple people are seen in a chaotic scene as officers work to control the crowd. Montano is visible on the sidewalk bleeding heavily from the neck area. A bystander removes his shirt and uses it to apply pressure to the wound while officers remain near the scene and the fight disperses.
The footage directly shows Montano critically wounded after the stabbing and a bystander trying to stop the bleeding. It does not show the full sequence before the stabbing, the first contact between the people involved, or a confirmed motive for the attack.
Police initially asked the public for help identifying a person of interest connected to the fatal stabbing. Investigators released images of a man described as wearing a light-colored fleece-lined denim jacket, light-colored denim pants, a pink shirt and white sneakers with blue and red accents. He also appeared to be wearing a dark blue head covering with long hair extending from underneath.
A suspect was arrested several days later. Davy Spencer, 47, of Wilmington, was taken into custody on April 11 after an investigation by the Wilmington Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Division. He was charged with second-degree murder and two counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill.
Arrest warrants cited in the case alleged that Spencer used a folding pocket knife during the attack. Police and court information also said two other victims were involved. Later reporting said the two men injured in the same incident were also Marines from Camp Lejeune, with one publicly identified as Esteban Solis. The other injured Marine was not publicly identified in the material reviewed.
A separate stabbing happened nearby within minutes of the attack involving Montano. Police said that second incident was not believed to be connected. In that case, a 22-year-old woman was seriously injured, and a separate suspect was arrested.
Spencer did not appear for his first scheduled court appearance on April 13 because he was hospitalized. Officials said he had a leg injury from the night of the homicide. He was not initially booked into jail after his arrest, apparently because he was taken for medical treatment.
Spencer later appeared by videoconference on April 16. During that hearing, he accepted a public defender. Bond was not addressed at that time because his attorney said they had not yet had time to discuss the issue. His next hearing was scheduled for April 30.
The fatal stabbing drew additional attention because the video raised questions about the police response during the chaotic scene. Local officials said officers had been responding to multiple fights, with several people in the street and more than one violent incident unfolding in the same area within minutes. The district attorney reviewed the circulated video and said he did not see criminal conduct by officers in the clip.
Montano died one day after the stabbing. The Marine Corps confirmed that he had been injured in an altercation in Wilmington around 2 a.m. on April 5 and died on April 6 from the injuries he sustained.
News story written by DarkGore.
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