Two men stabbed at State Fair; no arrests

Two men stabbed at the Minnesota State Fair on Sunday were treated at Regions Hospital in St. Paul for injuries that police said were not life-threatening.

The stabbings took place about 6:15 p.m. near the intersection of Cooper Street and Dan Patch Avenue and possibly involved a fight. No arrests had been made at 10 p.m. Sunday

Fair officials said that the two men were injured during what was termed an altercation but that they did not know the motive for the attack. However, investigators do not believe it was random, police said.

Police said the men were stabbed in the abdomen. No weapons had been recovered at the scene despite an extensive search.

State Fair Police Chief Art Blakey Jr. said the last stabbing at the fair was in 2007.

Dave Weller, who works at a Pronto Pup stand on Dan Patch Avenue, said he saw an officer wearing a latex glove walking up the avenue and knew something was wrong. He said he then saw two men walking up the street with blood on their stomachs. "I saw blood pouring out of one guy -- out of his stomach," Weller said. Sunday's fair attendance was expected to top 150,000, and the incident caused a large crowd to gather as police investigated and cordoned off a large area near the stabbing scene.

"I was a little bit disgusted to say the least," said Kelly Huntley of St. Paul. "This is a family event."

Staff writer Allie Shah contributed to this report. Heron Marquez • 952-746-3281