AMES — A 21-year-old Iowa man faces an attempted murder charge and a listed $1 million bond after police say a woman suffered neck injuries in a stabbing on Lincoln Way in Ames on Tuesday, October 27, 2026.
Ames police responded at 8:06 p.m. to 3800 Lincoln Way, where officers located the injured woman. She was transported to a Des Moines-area hospital, according to an October 28 police news release.
Officers located the suspect in a vehicle near the area and identified him as Timothy Cooke, 21, of Ames. He was charged with attempt to commit murder, a class B felony, and transported to the Story County Jail.
Story County jail lists $1 million bond
Jail records identify the defendant as Timothy Ernest Cooke (pictured at top) and list his arrest date as October 27, 2026. The booking information shows an attempted murder charge under Iowa Code section 707.11(1), with a bond amount of $1 million.
The charge is listed under Story County case FECR066036. The booking record does not list a court date or expected release date.
Cooke is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
Woman hospitalized as Ames stabbing investigation continues
Police have not identified the victim in the release or provided an update on her condition beyond reporting injuries to her neck and her transportation to a Des Moines-area hospital.
The department did not disclose a possible motive or say whether Cooke and the woman knew each other. Neither person was identified as an Iowa State University student.
Ames police said the investigation remains ongoing.
NIT has covered other Ames stabbing investigations
The Lincoln Way case follows other separate stabbing investigations covered by NorthIowaToday.com in the Iowa college town.
In March 2026, police investigated an Ames stabbing that killed a woman and her young child. A different suspect was charged with two counts of first-degree murder in that case.
NIT also reported on a November 2024 Ames stabbing that injured three people on Tripp Street. All three victims received hospital care, and one was transferred to a Des Moines hospital.
Authorities have announced no connection between those cases and the October 27 incident. Those individual cases do not establish a citywide crime trend.