A Turlock veteran who had previously gone through a county program to help him cope with his Post Traumatic Stress was arrested on Monday on suspicion of attempted murder.

The suspect, identified as Kenneth James Shipman, 39, of Turlock is accused of stabbing a man during a dispute. The man sustained life-threatening injuries and was rendered aid from emergency personnel after flagging down a Turlock Police supervisor.

According to the police department, Shipman and the victim were in some sort of argument around 12:40 p.m. Monday in the 500 block of Castor Street. As officers were enroute, they were told that the assault had turned into a stabbing.

A Turlock Police supervisor responding to the call was flagged down by a man, who turned out to be the stabbing victim, said Turlock Police spokesman Sgt. Michael Parmley. The man had left Castor Street on his own and was on his way to a hospital. Turlock Fire Department personnel arrived and immediately administered medical aid until relieved by ambulance personnel.

Before being taken to the hospital, the victim was able to name his attacker and gave investigators the general location of where the suspect’s residence was in Turlock.

Officers responded to the 400 block of West Main Street to look for the suspect and briefly spotted him in the area. A perimeter was established around the neighborhood and the police department’s drone team began an aerial search. Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Office Deputies responded to the area as well and assisted with the search using their drones and their helicopter.

Shipman was eventually found hiding in the home of a next-door neighbor. The discovery was made by the neighbor when he went into his home and saw Shipman. He alerted the police and Shipman was eventually taken into custody after exiting the neighbor’s residence approximately one hour after he was initially spotted, Parmley said.

“The safety of our community is our number one priority. We want to thank our law enforcement partners who assisted in the apprehension of this individual,” said Turlock Police Detective Raul Garcia.

In a previous story published in the Journal, Shipman spoke of his enlistment in the service after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. He developed PTSD after his deployment and stated he was hoping he would die when he drove drunk and crashed his vehicle into a high-voltage Turlock Irrigation District facility in 2016. He was being pursued by sheriff’s deputies at the time and when the crash didn’t kill him, he said he tried running in the hopes a deputy would shoot him. Instead, he was apprehended and eventually enrolled in the Stanislaus County Veterans Treatment Court program.

Shipman took classes in anger management, co-parenting classes, and completed intensive outpatient treatment, among other requirements under the program. He graduated from the program in 2020.

At the time, Shipman credited the program with giving him coping mechanisms that would help him not hurt himself or others.

Shipman remains in custody in lieu of a $500,000 bail.