‘He meant something to people:’ Fort Worth family remembers fatal stabbing victim
Juan Manuel Banda was a hard worker who loved to make people laugh, his family said.
The 55-year-old was fatally stabbed in March. His wife, 40-year-old Robin Banda, was arrested Tuesday and faces a murder charge in his death, according to jail records.
Juan Manuel Banda, who spent 21 years in the U.S. Navy, was strict but kind, his daughter Jessica Banda told the Star-Telegram. He had to be away from home a lot during his time in the military, but recently the father and daughter had gotten closer.
“He was funny,” Jessica Banda said of her father. “(He) always had something to say.”
Banda was stabbed in his home on March 13 and died from his injuries two days later. The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled his death a homicide.
Officers responded to the 13000 block of Hiskey Drive about 8:50 p.m. on March 13. They found Banda with stab wounds to the chest, police said. Another person received minor injuries.
According to police, the incident that led to the killing started as a domestic disturbance and quickly escalated. Banda was taken to Texas Health Fort Worth in critical condition. He died March 15 from “complications of sharp force injuries,” the medical examiner’s website states.
Robin Banda was booked into the Fort Worth City Jail on Tuesday, April 16. The 40-year-old faces a murder charge, according to police records. Her bond has not been set.
Jessica Banda said her father and Robin Banda married in July 2022. The family hopes the suspect will be sentenced to prison and that Juan Manuel Banda “gets the justice he deserves.”
“She took away my dad,” Jessica Banda said. “A grandfather. A brother. Son. Best friend.”
Jessica Banda remembers her father as someone who loved his family.
He was also passionate about physical fitness and could frequently be found in the gym. Country dancing was his favorite pastime, according to Jessica Banda.
“He meant something to people,” she said.
