Manhattan stabbing spree: 3 dead, suspect in custody

CNN
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Three unprovoked stabbings across Manhattan Monday morning left two men and one woman dead, according to the New York City Police Department. A man is in custody, police said.

Around 8:22 a.m., a 36-year-old male, identified as Angel Lata Landi of Peekskill, New York, was standing in front of a construction site near Chelsea when a “light-skinned man” with a beard approached him and stabbed him in the abdomen, police said. He was transported to Bellevue Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

More than two hours later, at approximately 10:25 a.m., a second person was stabbed, police said. The victim, a 67-year-old male, was fishing near the East River when he was attacked and stabbed multiple times in the abdomen. Police initially said the victim was 68 years old in an earlier update.

He was transported to Bellevue Hospital, where he was also pronounced dead. His identity is still pending family notification, according to the NYPD.

Then, at around 10:55 a.m., a 36-year-old woman, later identified as Wilma Augustin, was stabbed multiple times in the chest and left arm near the United Nations Headquarters, police said. She was transported to New York Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center, where she later succumbed to her injuries.

The suspect is a 51-year-old male who appears to be homeless, according to the NYPD, who identified him as Ramon Rivera. He was arrested at 7:45 p.m. on Monday.

Police said a cab driver saw what he believed to be a robbery and followed the suspect before flagging down an NYPD officer. The officer took the suspect into custody, where police recovered two bloody kitchen knives and observed him wearing bloody clothing.

Rivera has been charged with three counts of first-degree murder. Police said they are not currently looking for any additional suspects. It’s unclear whether Rivera has retained an attorney at this time.

New York Mayor Eric Adams said at a news conference what happened was a “clear example” of how the criminal justice and mental health systems fail New Yorkers, and the investigation will partly focus on why the suspect was on the streets despite being sentenced for a crime a few months ago and if supposed “severe mental health issues” were not evaluated.

Rivera has eight prior arrests, with the most recent for grand larceny in October, according to city officials.