Tyler police arrest suspect in fatal stabbing of Mineola mother

An arrest has been made in a fatal Tyler stabbing from over the weekend.

Joshua Isaiah Malina, 34, was arrested Tuesday in connection with the death of Karsen Lynn Stewart, 28, of Mineola, who was found stabbed to death Saturday night on South Confederate Avenue in Tyler.

Stewart was found unresponsive next to her car around 8:15 p.m. Saturday night in the 400 block of South Confederate Avenue. Her body was found in the street after officers responded to a 911 call about a possible car crash, Tyler Police Department spokesperson Andy Erbaugh said. When first responders arrived, they found Stewart with several stab wounds. She was later pronounced dead at a local hospital.

Police are still investigating but believe Stewart was killed near or inside her car. Evidence was being collected and as of Tuesday afternoon, no suspect description was available. However, by Wednesday morning, police had announced an arrest was made.

Police had asked residents near the scene of the crime to check their doorbell cameras or security footage from the night of May 17.

Surveillance footage helped authorities apprehend Malina, according to an arrest warrant affidavit. The footage shows Malina in Stewart’s car, which stops at a dead end street. He can be seen getting out of the vehicle to beat and stomp on Stewart as she was lying in the street.

At some point, Stewart manages to get back into the vehicle. The car’s brake lights come on, and it begins moving quickly in reverse. Malina is then seen rolling away from the driver’s side of the vehicle, suggesting he may have been caught or dragged by it as Stewart attempted to flee.

Afterward, Stewart is seen walking eastbound through a nearby church parking lot.

On May 19, Malina provided an alibi, placing Stewart at the Royal Inn earlier that day and leaving with another man. However surveillance footage from the Royal Inn showed Malina with Stewart.

Witnesses identified Malina in the footage from both the Royal Inn and the crime scene, noting matching clothing and accessories. A bracelet police say belongs to Malina was also found at the crime scene.

Malina told police “it was not supposed to go down that way,” the affidavit states, stating he ran away after the stabbing.

Malina was booked into the Smith County Jail on a first-degree murder charge with a bond of $2 million.

Erbaugh said police believe the attack was not random.

“... It is a pretty vicious thing to stab somebody to death,” Erbaugh said.

Stewart leaves behind twin baby boys, who just celebrated their first birthday. A GoFundMe page has been created to help support her children and cover family expenses. Over $14,000 of a $100,000 goal had been raised as of Thursday morning. Donations can be made at gofundme.com/f/in-loving-memory-of-karsen-support-for-her-twin-boys.

Donations will cover funeral and memorial expenses but also go toward daily living and childcare costs for the twins, medical and emotional support services, and a savings fund for the twins’ future education and care, according to the fundraiser page.

Stewart was “a devoted mother, sister, daughter, and friend ... She was the kind of person who made everyone feel welcomed and loved. Kind, caring, and full of warmth, she had a goofy sense of humor and a bright, beautiful spirit that lit up every room she entered. She loved deeply, especially when it came to her boys — they were her whole world,” according to the GoFundMe page.

Anyone with information on this case should call the Tyler Police Department at 903-531-1000.