Closing arguments begin in Burbank attempted murder case

Closing arguments began Friday in an attempted-murder trial involving a 23-year-old Burbank man accused of beating and stabbing his best friend of four years.

Eric Wang was charged with one count each of attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon after the stabbing, which left the victim, Anthony Savage, with severe head and upper-body injuries last year.

The incident occurred one evening January 2014 after the pair had spent an afternoon together eating and drinking at Umami Burger and Don Cuco in Burbank.

Prosecutor Ilean Richard said the two men subsequently went to Wang’s home, located in the 1600 block of West Alameda Avenue, where they watched television and began shadowboxing, something that they had done more than 10 times.

But after hearing loud noises and thumping, neighbors left their homes to see what was going on. Someone even heard, “S--t, get up, get up,” coming from inside the apartment, according to Richard.

Savage was beaten and stabbed multiple times, leaving him in the hospital for 13 days.

Defense attorney Michael Flanagan indicated that Wang was also beaten and had had the “wind knocked out of him” when he was forced into a cabinet. He added that Wang had no motive to kill his friend.

According to Richard, Wang had no injuries other than minor swelling under one of his eyes. After the assault, he attempted to flush the knife down the toilet. He later dragged Savage — who he thought was dead — to the sidewalk, she said.

After the incident, Wang’s apartment was reportedly covered with splatters, smudges and pools of blood.

When authorities showed up, Wang reportedly told them he didn’t know what happened and asked them if they would find out who hurt his friend, Richard said.

According to Flanagan, Wang denied involvement because he panicked and was scared.

Flanagan noted discrepancies in Savage’s statements from when he was first interviewed by detectives in the hospital to when he testified during the trial. For example, Savage initially said he didn’t remember being at Wang’s apartment, Flanagan said.

Savage also reportedly testified that Wang was angered by a 10- to 15-minute phone conversation with his mother that evening, though phone records showed no evidence of the call, Flanagan said.

Richard said that Savage couldn’t be held to the statements he made hours after waking up from a coma, when he was heavily medicated.

Closing arguments are slated to continue Monday, after which the jury will begin deliberating.