The man arrested for stabbing and killing three people in New York City was out on bail and arrested eight times prior to his spree, according to city authorities.
The suspect, 51-year-old Ramon Rivera, a homeless Hispanic man, was arrested Monday for “unprovoked” stabbings over the course of less than three hours, according to city officials at a press conference held the same day. The suspect was arrested eight times prior to the incident, committing the attacks while out on bail for grand larceny earlier this year, NBC New York reported.
“There’s a real question as to why he was on the street.” New York City Mayor Eric Adams said at the press conference. “It’s preliminary now, but he was sentenced a few months ago.”
He had also been indicted and arrested three times in Hudson County, New Jersey, for theft, burglary and criminal mischief, according to NBC New York. A spokesperson for the prosecutor’s office in Hudson County told NBC New York that he was released on pretrial monitoring under the provisions of the Criminal Justice Reform Act enacted in New Jersey in 2017, which allows for pretrial release without cash bail, according to a 2023 analysis from the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Rivera has since been charged with three counts of first-degree murder, according to NBC New York. Rivera also had a history of “severe mental health issues,” Adams said at the press conference.
These were the knives that were recovered at today’s stabbing in Manhattan. pic.twitter.com/31hzHaIBao
— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) November 18, 2024
The first victim, identified as 36-year-old man, Angel Lata Landi, was stabbed without warning at 8:22 a.m. Monday morning near the Chelsea borough of Manhattan, being pronounced dead after being rushed to Bellevue Hospital, the New York Police Department (NYPD) told the Daily Caller News Foundation. Witnesses said Rivera was wielding kitchen knives.
At 10:25 a.m., Rivera stabbed his next victim, an unidentified 68-year-old Asian man, while he was fishing near the east river, the NYPD told the DCNF. The victim was pronounced dead at Bellevue Hospital after he was transported by first responders.
Finally, Rivera stabbed a 36-year-old Wilma Augustin multiple times outside the United Nations building at 10:55 a.m., the NYPD told the DCNF. While she was alive in critical condition upon arrival at a Weill Cornell Medical Center, she ultimately succumbed to her injuries.
The NYPD arrested Rivera near the Turkish mission to the United Nations, according to city officials. The man’s clothing and two kitchen knives were covered in blood at the time of the arrest.
The NYPD provided names and additional incident information, but did not provide additional comment on the incident to the DCNF.
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