Investigators say video, plate readers and recovered items helped build the attempted homicide case.

LA CROSSE, Wis. — A Wisconsin man bought a knife at Walmart hours before he stabbed his ex-girlfriend as she held their 11-month-old child, police say, in a case that has led to an attempted first-degree intentional homicide charge.

Ivan Aldair Canchola-Garcia, 28, is accused in the May 15 attack on 16th Street South in La Crosse. Police said the woman suffered multiple stab wounds and was taken to a local hospital. The child was not hurt. The case moved quickly from an overnight emergency call to a multi-state arrest and a $1 million bond, with investigators citing surveillance video, license plate readers, a recovered knife, gloves and a mask.

The first call came at about 11:22 p.m. May 15, when La Crosse police were sent to assist first responders in the 1100 block of 16th Street South. Officers found the victim with wounds to her neck, armpit and shoulder blade, according to allegations in a criminal complaint described in local reports. Police said the woman remained under medical care after the attack. A police statement called the case isolated, meaning investigators did not believe there was a wider threat to the public. La Crosse police later identified Canchola-Garcia as the suspect and said he may have left the state after the stabbing. Police said they were working with prosecutors to pursue an arrest warrant tied to attempted first-degree intentional homicide.

The complaint places the retail purchase near the center of the case. Investigators said surveillance footage showed Canchola-Garcia inside a local Walmart buying a blade hours before the stabbing. Police also used license plate reader data to place him at the store, according to the complaint. Authorities allege he then went to the victim’s home wearing a mask and gloves. They say he attacked her while she held their infant daughter. The baby, who was 11 months old, escaped injury. The woman’s name was not released in the available reports, and police have not publicly described the full condition of her injuries beyond saying she needed medical care.

Police say the trail did not end at the home. Investigators reviewed video from a Kwik Trip convenience store and said it showed Canchola-Garcia getting rid of a knife, gloves and a mask. Officers recovered those items, according to the complaint. A friend also told investigators that Canchola-Garcia admitted the attack. “I did it. I did what I needed to do. I tried to kill her. I went for the neck,” he allegedly said, according to the complaint. The statement, if proven, could become a key piece of the prosecution’s attempt to show intent. Canchola-Garcia has not been convicted in the case and is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

The arrest came the next day in Indiana. Police said Canchola-Garcia was located by law enforcement on May 16 in Whitestown, a town northwest of Indianapolis, and taken into custody on outstanding Dane County, Wisconsin, warrants. La Crosse police then continued working with the La Crosse County District Attorney’s Office on the attempted homicide case. The distance from La Crosse to central Indiana added an interstate element to an investigation that began as a late-night call on the city’s south side. Police did not say in their public statement how Canchola-Garcia traveled after the attack or whether anyone helped him leave Wisconsin.

Court and police reports list the main allegation as attempted first-degree intentional homicide. Canchola-Garcia also was reported to face domestic abuse and use of a dangerous weapon allegations. The attempted homicide count is tied to Wisconsin statutes for intentional homicide and attempt. The complaint details, as reported, describe a targeted attack on the mother of his child, but the public record available in reports does not include a full motive. It also does not say whether the victim had sought prior protection from him or whether there had been previous police calls involving the pair. Those details remain unknown.

The setting of the case is a residential part of La Crosse, a Mississippi River city in western Wisconsin. The 1100 block of 16th Street South sits within the city’s south side, where the late-night police response drew first responders, investigators and evidence technicians. The location later became only one point in a wider timeline that included a Walmart, a Kwik Trip and an arrest in Indiana. The police account shows how common pieces of public and private security infrastructure, including store cameras and plate readers, can shape a violent-crime investigation in its first hours.

Prosecutors will have to prove both the attack and the required intent behind the attempted homicide charge. The evidence described in the complaint may be tested through motions, witness testimony and cross-examination if the case advances. Defense attorneys can challenge how police collected the video, whether the recovered items are tied to the attack and how any alleged statement to a friend should be weighed. The available reports do not list a full schedule of future hearings. The next steps are expected to include continued court appearances in La Crosse County and further review of the complaint, evidence and bond conditions.

The case also left two immediate survivors at its center: a woman recovering from multiple stab wounds and a baby who was in her arms during the attack. Officials have not released the woman’s name, and the child’s identity is protected by age and circumstance. Police said the child was not harmed. Reports said the woman was expected to survive, though the full course of her recovery was not made public. The alleged attack drew attention because of the detail that the child was present, but police have kept most personal information about the victim private.

As of reporting, Canchola-Garcia was being held in La Crosse County on a $1 million bond after the charge was filed. The investigation remained active after the arrest, and the next milestone is expected in La Crosse County Circuit Court as prosecutors move the attempted homicide case forward.

Author note: Last updated June 18, 2026.