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North Beach churchgoer stabbed, suspect arrested

A Catholic church stands above a quiet city street on a sunny day.
A churchgoer was stabbed Sunday afternoon outside Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church on Filbert Street in San Francisco’s North Beach neighborhood. | Source: George Kelly/The Standard

A churchgoer was stabbed by a knife-wielding man outside a North Beach church Sunday afternoon, according to Supervisor Aaron Peskin, who said he was briefed about the incident by police.

In a statement Monday, Peskin said that police told him the victim was attending a mass at Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church when the suspect started yelling and being rude. When the victim tried to get him to leave, the suspect stabbed him in the leg. A witness held the suspect down until officers could arrest the man.

Peskin said the suspect was taken into custody, and the victim was scheduled to be released from the hospital when he checked in on Sunday night. The supervisor added that he planned to visit the victim later on Monday with the police captain.

The San Francisco Police Department said in a statement that officers responded to Filbert Street between Powell and Stockton streets for a stabbing report. When officers arrived, they found a man suffering from a stab wound and gave him aid.

Firefighters and paramedics responded to a stabbing at 12:50 p.m., with paramedics taking a trauma victim to a hospital, a San Francisco Fire Department spokesperson said.

Stone steps and an archway outside a church gleam in morning sunlight.
A churchgoer was stabbed Sunday afternoon outside the front steps of Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church on Filbert Street. | Source: George Kelly/The Standard

Officers also found a suspect, later identified as Marko Asaulyuk, 25, and arrested him on suspicion of attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon. Asaulyuk was booked into county jail around 3:35 p.m. Sunday, and held without bail, according to online booking records.

City records show police responded within two minutes to Brant Alley and Greenwich Street for a reported stabbing shortly before 1 p.m., while a Citizen platform post shows officers and paramedics responding to the front of Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church on Filbert Street between Powell and Stockton streets moments later.

A report from The Standard’s news partner ABC7 said the Archbishop of San Francisco was in attendance during a confirmation service when the suspect first entered the church before church leaders escorted the man outside.

The Archdiocese of San Francisco has been contacted for comment.

George Kelly can be reached at gkelly@sfstandard.com