A man is dead after being stabbed at the Red Oaks Townhomes apartment complex in Whitehaven, near Memphis International Airport, and Memphis police say the suspected attacker fled the scene and remains on the run. Officers were sent to a wounding call at the complex on West Red Oaks Drive on Tuesday, where they found a man who had been stabbed.
The victim was taken to a hospital for treatment but later died of his injuries, according to FOX13 Memphis. Memphis police believe a man was responsible for the stabbing, but that suspect has not been captured and is considered on the run. Local Spanish-language outlet En Resumen Noticias also reported that the victim was transported to an area hospital before dying, and confirmed police were searching for a male suspect who fled the scene.
Where the Attack Happened
Red Oaks Townhomes is a 155-unit residential complex located at 4907 Autumn Leaf Drive, where Autumn Leaf Drive and West Red Oaks Drive intersect within the property grounds, according to The ORA App. The complex sits in Whitehaven, a South Memphis neighborhood of roughly 40,000 residents situated adjacent to Memphis International Airport. Severe stabbing trauma victims in Memphis are routinely transported to the Elvis Presley Trauma Center at Regional One Health in Midtown, the region's primary Level 1 trauma facility.
Investigators have not released the identity of the victim, the suspect, or any details about a possible motive or relationship between the two men. Whether the victim and suspect knew each other remains an open question in the investigation. Anyone with information is asked to call CrimeStoppers at 901-528-CASH, which offers cash rewards of up to $2,000 for anonymous tips that lead to an arrest in local violent felony cases.
A History of Violence Along Red Oaks Drive
This is not the first violent incident in the immediate area. In August 2023, a shooting in the 100 block of West Red Oaks Drive left a woman dead and a one-year-old child wounded, according to localmemphis.com. And in November 2024, police arrested a security guard on attempted second-degree murder charges after he opened fire on a driver trying to leave an apartment complex in the 200 block of East Red Oaks Street.
Should the suspect in Tuesday's stabbing be caught, Tennessee law could bring serious consequences. Under Tennessee Code Annotated § 39-13-210, second-degree murder is defined as a knowing killing without premeditation and carries Class A felony penalties ranging from 15 to 60 years in prison, per Freeman & Fuson.
Part of a Broader Citywide Trend
The stabbing comes even as Memphis has seen substantial improvement in its overall violent crime numbers. The Memphis Police Department reported a 60% decline in second-quarter 2026 murders compared to the same period in 2025, along with an 81% homicide clearance rate for its Homicide Bureau. Citywide, annual homicide totals fell from 351 in 2023 to 250 in 2024 and 184 in 2025, according to Wikipedia, reflecting a multi-year downward trend heading into this year.
Still, the Red Oaks corridor has continued to see recurring violent incidents even as the city's broader numbers improve. This is the latest in a string of stabbings Hoodline has covered across Memphis in recent weeks, including a critical stabbing on Winfield Road in Whitehaven and a fatal stabbing outside the Memphis Federal Reserve building whose motive remains unknown. No arrests have been announced in the Red Oaks Townhomes case, and police have not said whether they have identified the suspect.
