A man who was stabbed in the neck with a piece of glass at a Portland bar on Friday has died from his injuries.
Sam Van Dyke, 31, was attacked at the Church Bar on Sandy Boulevard in Portland on Friday night. He had confronted another man for harassing a woman on the phone, which reportedly led to the confrontation.
Witnesses at the scene identified the attacker as Abraham Bravo, 28, who was apprehended approximately two blocks west of the bar after the attack.
One of the witnesses was Van Dyke’s girlfriend, Kaylee Woods. She told KGW8 that she and Van Dyke were hanging out on the bar’s porch when Bravo walked out, speaking loudly and disrespectfully to a woman on the phone.
“I don’t remember exactly what was going on, but Sammy’s always been that stand-up type of dude,” she told the broadcaster. “[He said] you’re talking really loud, we’re in a public setting. First of all, don’t be disrespecting women, and don’t do it in front of my lady.”
The men then reportedly exchanged words before Bravo allegedly broke a glass bottle and used it to stab Van Dyke.
“I thought it was just going to be a fight, but there was no fight,” she said, “It was glass breaking, and he got cut right away, and started bleeding out.”
Police initially booked Bravo on second-degree assault charges and discovered he had an active warrant for his arrest. Van Dyke died on Monday, after which Bravo’s charges were upgraded to first-degree manslaughter and first-degree assault.
Bravo reportedly told police he had only attacked in self defense, saying he was “scared for his life” and that Van Dyke “had bullets.”
Jaeiah Van Dyke, Sam’s mother, spoke to KOIN 6 News about her son’s death.
“I just, I can’t believe he’s not here anymore,” she said. “Teaching him to respect women, we never thought that would end up getting him killed.”
Van Dyke was the youngest of the family’s three boys. He was adopted from Eswatini, a small African nation formerly known as Swaziland.
His mother remembered him as a child who “loved to laugh” and described him as “carefree.”
“He had a very infectious smile,” she said.
The family has set up a GoFundMe to cover the costs of Van Dyke’s funeral.
“We weren’t expecting to pay for a funeral,” his mother said. “When your son is 31 years old you’re not thinking along those lines.”
Police are still investigating the attack. They believe there are several witnesses who were at the bar who may be able to assist their investigation, but had not yet come forward.
Anyone with information about Van Dyke’s death have been asked to reach out to the Portland Police Bureau.
Bravo made his first court appearance on Monday in Multnomah County.
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