Wake DA’s office reopening downtown stabbing investigation after reviewing video

Update: Wake DA’s office drops charges against man accused in downtown Raleigh stabbings

The Wake County District Attorney’s Office is reopening an investigation into a stabbing incident in downtown Raleigh over the weekend, a prosecutor said Tuesday, after newly reviewed surveillance footage suggested the man accused of the attack was defending himself.

The man charged in the incident, Frank Lalich, appeared virtually in court Tuesday. He faces four counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to seriously injure.

Witnesses told police that a verbal dispute between Lalich and a group of people early Saturday morning in front of The Anchor bar on Fayetteville Street led to Lalich using a knife to assault four people.

But video surveillance showed a different story, with Lalich appearing to be sucker-punched and kicked while on the ground, Assistant District Attorney David Welch said. It was at that point, Welch said, “there appears to be a knife swung around” while the group attacks Lalich on the ground.

“The video does not support the allegations that he initiated a fight and stabbed the victims,” Welch said.

Lalich received significant injuries in the attack and needs to see a health specialist within 10 days for treatment, his attorney, Russell DeMent, said in the court hearing. DeMent said Lalich has no history of criminal behavior or mental illness, has a master’s degree and has been in Wake County for 10 years.

“Everything about this suggests he was acting in self-defense with reasonable fear of his life and more serious bodily injury,” DeMent said.

All six adults involved in the altercation were transported to the hospital with serious but not life-threatening injuries, The News & Observer previously reported.

Judge Brian Ratledge set bail for Lalich at $2,000 secured, ordered him not to contact any of the victims and required him to be electronically monitored.

The District Attorney’s Office asked for Lalich to be released on an unsecured bail. Secured bail requires a person to post money or property before they can be released. Unsecured bail doesn’t require someone to pay up front.

DeMent asked if any of the release conditions could be dropped, but the judge refused.

“I need to cover my bases,” Ratledge said, because Lalich is still facing four felony charges and the investigation is not complete.

Lalich’s next court date is May 5 at 2 p.m.

Concern from public officials, citizens

The Saturday stabbing, coupled with a shooting early Sunday morning on Glenwood Avenue that left one man injured, has sparked a wave of concern from public officials and community members.

Mayor Janet Cowell said in a statement it was “difficult” seeing two violent crimes in the downtown area on the same weekend.

The Police Department “continues to adjust and layer its work downtown to amplify its coverage — from bike patrols to adding presence in specific locations when needed,” she wrote.

On Tuesday, Raleigh Police Department Chief Rico Boyce decried the “recent violence” across Raleigh in the past four days. He spoke at a news conference Tuesday for an unrelated shooting in a Food Lion parking lot in North Raleigh. Though violence is trending down in Raleigh, Boyce said, RPD officials are already working on new plans to combat gun violence over the summer.

“The Raleigh Police Department will not tolerate this level of violence in our city,” he said. “We’re going to work vigorously to identify those who are responsible. We’re going to work with our law enforcement partners, with the Wake County District Attorney, and the US attorneys office to make sure we hold those individuals accountable and make sure that they receive jail time for their activities.”

This story was originally published April 14, 2026 at 3:41 PM.

Nolan Wilkinson

The News & Observer