A woman was sitting at a picnic table outside her apartment complex Saturday when a man seemingly came out of nowhere and stabbed her to death, authorities said.
Dr. Talat Jehan Khan, a 52-year-old pediatrician, had been sitting with her dog in the Conroe, Texas, complex's common area at 12:30 p.m. when Miles Joseph Fridrich allegedly attacked.
Multiple witnesses heard screaming and ran out, Conroe police said. One witness, Matthew Amador, reportedly confronted the suspect with a sword, and others exited their homes with guns, prompting the suspect to flee on foot.
Amador said the suspect had checked Khan's pulse and then stabbed her three times. The witness gave arriving police a description of the 24-year-old man, and they quickly found and took him into custody on the east side of the complex.
Khan was unable to be revived by emergency responders and was pronounced dead on the scene.
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Fridrich now faces a first-degree murder charge and is being held at the Montgomery County Jail on a $500,000 bond.
Police haven't released a motive for the stabbing. However, the Council on American-Islamic Relations in Houston said it is looking into the Muslim woman's death.
"We are unsure at this moment if this was a hate crime; however, given the tragic circumstances, we are paying very close attention to the investigation," it said in a statement. "We will continue to monitor the situation while we launch our own investigation and continue to establish dialogue with law enforcement."
Khan had moved from Seattle to the Houston area just months ago, family members told KHOU11. She leaves behind a daughter and a son.
