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ELKINS -- A man who stabbed a co-worker at a Japanese restaurant last year was sentenced to one to five years in prison this week.
Shi Span Pink, 49, was sentenced by Randolph County Circuit Court Judge David Wilmoth to no less than one, nor more than five years in prison for one count of unlawful assault, a felony, with credit for time already served.
Pink will also have to pay $3,600 in restitution to the victim in this case. After sentencing Pink, Wilmoth noted that, with the credit for time served, Pink could apply for parole in approximately 30 days.
On May 4, Pink entered an Alford plea to one count of unlawful assault, a felony, in Randolph County Circuit Court. By entering an Alford plea, Pink did not have to admit to the criminal act and could assert his innocence, but he still accepted the imposition of a sentence.
In October, Pink was initially indicted by the Randolph County Grand Jury on one count of malicious assault, and one count of assault during the commission of a felony, both felonies, and one count of battery, a misdemeanor.
During the sentencing hearing, Pink was represented by attorney Haixia Yang, and an interpreter fluent in Mandarin Chinese joined the hearing through a video call, as Pink does not speak English. The state was represented by Prosecuting Attorney Michael Parker.
At the hearing’s start, Yang called a former coworker of Pink to testify on Pink’s character. The coworker, who spoke only in Mandarin Chinese, was translated to have said that she has known Pink for four years and he has lived with her in the past. She stated that he had always been friendly and hard-working, and he had never been violent before the incident at Sakura Japanese Restaurant in Elkins. She also stated that, if Pink was sentenced to probation, he would be temporarily staying with her again.
Yang asked the court to sentence Pink to supervised probation, as she argued he has no prior criminal history and that he had genuine remorse for his actions. She stated that probation will allow Pink to have more opportunities to pay the restitution to the victim in this case.
Pink also addressed the court. He was interpreted as saying he deeply regrets the harm he caused and he extended an apology to the victim, who was not present in the courtroom. Pink asked Wilmoth to allow him “another opportunity.”
In his address to the court, Parker agreed with many of the things Yang previously said, including that Pink had no prior criminal record and that he was remorseful. However, Parker also noted that the state could not ignore the seriousness of the offense and recommended the court to sentence Pink to one to five years in prison.
During the May 4 plea agreement hearing, Parker laid out the factual basis for the case against Pink. According to Parker, on Aug. 15, 2025, an argument broke out between Pink and Xue Ying Xheng, another employee at Sakura Japanese Restaurant. Pink struck Xheng with a spatula, and when Shu Shuo Chen, the victim in this case and another co-worker of Pink's, tried to intervene, Pink grabbed a knife and stabbed Chen in the face.
According to the criminal complaint, filed by Trooper H.J. Bonetti with the West Virginia State Police, the fight was broken up by several off-duty police officers who were eating in the restaurant at the time of the incident on Aug. 15.