Raleigh police investigate three stabbings at downtown homeless encampment

Raleigh police were called to a wooded encampment off South Wilmington Street near Walker Street, south of downtown Raleigh, after a fight broke out and three people were stabbed. Officers responded shortly after 10 p.m. Wednesday, and all three victims were taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Police said the stabbing happened in the 1400 block of South Wilmington Street and began after an argument. Officers at the scene told reporters the suspect ran off before police arrived, but they did not believe there was an ongoing threat to the public. The investigation remained active Thursday as detectives worked to piece together how the confrontation escalated inside the camp.

The location matters. South Wilmington Street sits just below downtown, close enough to the city center that violence there lands quickly in view of nearby residents, workers and people driving past late at night. It also sits in one of the most visible places where Raleigh’s homelessness crisis, public safety concerns and land-use tensions collide.

The City of Raleigh says unsheltered homelessness in Wake County has doubled since 2020, as rising housing costs push more people onto the street or into encampments on public and private property. Wake County Government’s preliminary 2025 Point-in-Time Count found 1,258 people experiencing homelessness, nearly 27% more than the year before. County officials said the count used a new app and 145 volunteers, a much larger effort than the few dozen volunteers used in 2024.

That broader picture has shaped Raleigh’s response. The city launched Bringing Neighbors Home, a pilot program aimed at permanent housing and supportive services for people living unsheltered, and says its Unsheltered Homelessness Response Strategy is designed to address visible homelessness in downtown Raleigh and other high-traffic areas. Raleigh’s ACORNS program says arresting people who are dealing with mental health, substance-use or homelessness concerns often does not create a lasting positive impact.

City officials have pointed to past results as they weigh enforcement and outreach. Raleigh said the 2024 Dix Park camp closure left 45 households in stable housing or with a clear plan to housing. The city also maintains online crime-mapping and open-data tools, part of a larger effort to track where public safety problems are surfacing as downtown Raleigh continues to absorb the strain.