Suspect in Camden boy

Police have arrested a 31-year-old man in connection with the Camden stabbings that left a 6-year-old boy dead and his 12-year-old sister seriously injured, authorities said this morning.

Osvaldo Rivera, who goes by the nickname "Popeye," was located by police on Sunday afternoon, hiding between a mattress and his bedroom wall, according to a statement from Jason Laughlin, a spokesman for the Camden County prosecutor's office. Police also found bloodstained sneakers matching the footprints from the crime scene.

Rivera has told investigators from the prosecutor's office that he smoked "wet," a combination of marijuana and PCP, before the killing, which took place early Sunday morning. PCP, which has been known to cause vivid hallucinations, has also been linked to the Aug. 23 death of 2-year-old Zahree Thomas in Camden. Thomas's mother, Chevronne, is believed to have smoked wet before allegedly decapitating her son.

Rivera's relationship to the children who were involved in Sunday's attack was not immediately clear, but Laughlin said he was known to stay at an apartment in the area, on the 3200 block of River Road.

Dominick Andujor and his sister, Amber, were in an upstairs bedroom in their home on the 900 block of Ware Street when a man slashed their throats, authorities said.

Two other girls, 14 and 9, were in the home at the time but were not injured, according to a statement from Camden County Prosecutor Warren Faulk and Camden Police Chief Scott Thomson.

Amber ran bleeding to a neighbor's house for help, neighbors said. She is in critical condition, Laughlin said today.