EDGEWOOD, Pa. — A Pittsburgh doctor is dead, and his wife was critically injured after police said a man entered their Edgewood home while they slept and attacked them with a knife.
UPMC confirmed that the man killed in the attack, Idris Evans, was a pediatric critical care physician at Children’s Hospital and an assistant professor at the University of Pittsburgh.
Police arrested and charged Elijah Hemingway, 32, for the stabbing. He is facing multiple charges, including criminal homicide, aggravated assault, burglary and criminal trespass.
Attacked Victims While They Were Sleeping
Emergency dispatchers were notified of the stabbing in the 100 block of Linden Avenue on Thursday at around 12:30 a.m.
Allegheny County Police said that Hemingway entered the victims’ home through a rear window and started attacking them while they were sleeping.
According to the criminal complaint, the woman ran to a neighboring home for help before the call to 911 was made.
When first responders arrived, they found a man, later identified as Evans, 46, in a bedroom on the third floor. Both he and his wife were taken to hospitals in critical condition.
“It was a very violent scene. Bedroom furniture broken, mirrors broken. It was a very graphic scene,” said Vic Joseph, Assistant Superintendent of the Allegheny County Police Department.
Police said later Thursday morning that Evans was pronounced dead at the hospital.
The victim’s two children, ages 8 and 12, were able to make it out of the home safely.
Suspect Claimed He Was ‘God’
The woman told police that a man in his underwear, later identified as Hemingway, started stabbing them inside their home while they were asleep, according to the complaint.
She described Hemingway as “psychotic” and said he kept talking about “God” and being “God.”
During the attack, the woman said she recalls her husband calling the suspect “Elijah” as if he knew him, but she herself didn’t know who he was, the complainant states.
She told police that she and her husband tried fighting back as best as they could.
Following the attack, she said Hemingway demanded her car keys, and she gave them to him, but she was unable to recall how he left.
Tracking Down The Suspect
After the stabbing, a K9 unit from the Monroeville Police Department found Hemingway behind a nearby home with cuts on his hand.
“I was going to the backyard, and all the officers rushed the backyard,” neighbor Sandra Trappen told Channel 11.
Trappen said police arrested Hemingway in the bushes in her backyard.
“Once they found him, he appeared to be bleeding and incapacitated, and immediately called for a unit to come and pick him up,” Trappen said.
He was detained and taken to a hospital for treatment.
Our crew on scene Thursday morning spotted Hemingway in the back of an ambulance.
At the hospital, Hemingway told police that Evans allegedly invited him to his home and attacked him first, but police could not find any evidence supporting his story, the complaint states.
Channel 11 looked into Hemingway’s criminal history and found 16 previous charges.
The most recent was last February for an overnight burglary. Police said he broke into an ex-girlfriend’s home and was supposed to be in court for that next week. He was out on non-monetary bail.
‘Deeply Saddened’: Victim was Doctor at UPMC Children’s Hospital
UPMC confirmed to Channel 11 that Evans was a pediatric critical care physician at Children’s Hospital and an assistant professor at the University of Pittsburgh. They released the following statement:
“The UPMC and University of Pittsburgh community is deeply saddened by the tragic loss of Dr. Idris Evans, a pediatric critical care physician at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh and an assistant professor of critical care medicine at the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Evans was a dedicated caregiver and valued member of our hospital and university communities. Our thoughts are with his family, loved ones, and colleagues during this difficult time. We ask that their privacy be respected.”
Neighbor of UPMC doctor killed in stabbing reflects on his kind actions
A neighbor and friend is remembering Dr. Idris Evans after the brutal knife attack that took his life.
“They’re a wonderful family and they didn’t deserve this,” Jeannine Fisher said. She lives just a few doors down from the Evans family.
They have kids around the same age.
“I remember when I first met Idris; he helped me carry my groceries from down the street to my house. I remembered his name because it was like, ‘Oh, that’s an interesting name,’” she said.
She describes the Evans family as loving, outgoing, friendly, and helpful.
Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.
Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW
©2026 Cox Media Group
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/XCUXZC2XYZHCRGNNGKFEX6U3LQ.png)
