SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Chris Abrahamsen, the victim of a brutal stabbing attack in Ocean Beach, is out of the hospital and speaking out about his emotional recovery, and the arrest of his suspected attacker.
In mid-April, Abrahamsen and a friend were playing guitar outside of Hodad's when they went to a nearby dumpster. That's when Abrahamsen, 36, says a woman approached them and stabbed Abrahamsen's friend several times in the chest.
"She looked like a demon. Her eyes were black. Her eyelids were peeled back," Abrahamsen said in an April 14 interview.
Abrahamsen says he pleaded with the woman not to kill him, telling her he had a 12-year-old daughter. He was able to pull the knife out of his own chest, but suffered a sliced diaphragm and collapsed lung — the wound was less than an inch from being fatal.
"I'm thinking, 'I'm dead. She stabbed me in the heart and I'm dead,'" Abrahamsen recalled.
Despite his injuries, Abrahamsen followed the woman for several blocks before giving up and calling 911. Both he and his friend survived the attack, but their recoveries have been painful.
Abrahamsen says he still suffers from nerve damage and limited lung capacity, experiencing "pain shooting down my arm, all the way to my fingertips, every day."
On April 29, police arrested 29-year-old Jana Halaska in connection with the case, on suspicion of assault, attempted murder and possession of a controlled substance. Halaska pleaded not guilty to the charges last week.
"Off the streets, this is good. Didn’t want anyone else to get hurt," Abrahamsen said of the arrest.
Abrahamsen says he thinks about how close he came to death "100 times a day," swinging between feelings of anger and gratitude.
"I think God was looking out for me. I'm grateful," he said.
A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to help Abrahamsen and his friend with their recovery.
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