New York

Suspect in Rockland County Murder Arrested After Fleeing to Boston: Police

What to Know

  • Authorities have taken a suspect into custody in connection with the alleged murder of a man whose body was found in a Rockland County home
  • Authorities in Rockland County enlisted the help of police academy recruits as they searched for the suspect in the murder of the man
  • A 40-year-old man was found dead with at least two stab wounds; Police are trying to piece together a motive

Authorities have taken a suspect into custody in connection with the alleged stabbing murder of a man whose body was found in a Rockland County home early Wednesday morning.

It was a 911 call at approximately 3:52 a.m. Wednesday that brought cops to the home in North Brook Road. The call allegedly reported a dispute of some kind and a person bleeding.

Responding officers found the victim, 40-year-old Jose Victor Sandoval Gutierrez, bleeding severly on the floor, Ramapo police said. He was pronounced dead. 

According to police, at some point during the dispute, the suspect, Jose Alejandro Madrid, 23 and of Ramapo, stabbed the victim at least twice — once in the chest and another in the back.

Police say a large kitchen knife was recovered though forensics has yet to confirm if it was the murder weapon.

Police say the suspect fled the scene and got a ride, at some point, to Port Authority in New York City, where he apparently boarded a bus to Boston. 

Ramapo Police worked with Port Authority Police and Boston Police to help apprehend Madrid.

A motive is currently unclear, but police say that the suspect has a family member who lives at the house where the incident occurred, adding there are reports the two men may have been fighting over a woman who lives at the home. However, police have not confirmed what the dispute was about.

Police say charges against Madrid, including that of murder, are pending. It is unknown if he has already obtained an attorney. 

Authorities in Rockland County at one point enlisted the help of Rockland County Police Academy recruits as they searched for the suspect.

On Wednesday morning, as the search was underway, police told NBC 4 New York they knew exactly who they were looking for, describing the suspect as a man in his 20s who fled the area.

“It’s a good opportunity,” Ramapo Police Chief Brad Weidel said of enlisting recruits to help. “A: We get a lot of additional assistance because we have a large area that we would like to search and go through and try to find evidence.”

Weidel  initially told NBC 4 New York that the incident was not a random act, adding that the victim and the suspect new each other.

Authorities say this is the first homicide in Ramapo this year. There were no homicides in the town in 2018.

The investigation is ongoing.

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