A suspect is in custody accused of fatally stabbing three people across three different locations in unprovoked attacks in Manhattan on Monday morning, the NYPD said. New York City Mayor Eric Adams is raising questions about why the suspect, who has a history of mental health concerns and arrests, was on the streets.
The alleged attacker was caught at 46th Street and 1st Avenue and is currently in custody at a police precinct, police officials announced at a press conference Monday afternoon.
Police believe the suspect was responsible for a stabbing spree across Manhattan starting early Monday morning before he was arrested by officers, officials say.
"These attacks appear to be unprovoked, that he just walked up to them and stabbed them with a knife," said NYPD chief of detectives Joseph Kenny.
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Ramon Rivera, 51, has been identified as the suspect, according to two New York City officials, who say records show he has an extensive criminal history.
Police said the first stabbing occurred at 8:22 a.m. on West 19th Street in Chelsea when a man stabbed a 30-year-old man in the abdomen outside a construction site where the victim was working. The victim was taken to Bellevue Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
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A second stabbing occurred at 30th Street and FDR Dr. in Kips Bay where a 68-year-old man was stabbed and killed while he was fishing near the Water Club, police said. The victim was stabbed multiple times, according to police.
A third stabbing occurred later Monday morning when a woman was attacked at 42nd Street and 1st Ave in Midtown East shortly before 11 a.m., police said. According to police sources, the 36-year-old woman was pronounced dead Monday evening.
Police believe the suspect did not take public transit or a vehicle between the stabbing locations.
The suspect has "severe mental health issues" that need examination and there are questions about why he was out on the streets, Adams said at a news conference. The mayor said the mental health system continues to "fail New Yorkers."
Rivera has been arrested eight times in New York City in the past year, including seven felonies and one misdemeanor, records show. He also has been arrested in Ohio and Florida.
He was released from Department of Corrections custody on Oct. 17 for time served on burglary and assault charges, according to city records. At the time of Monday's stabbings, Rivera was on bail in an open case of grand larceny, accused of taking property from a Manhattan store later on Oct. 17, the day of his release.
Rivera also was arrested three times in Hudson County, New Jersey in January and indicted by a grand jury all three times, according to the Hudson County Prosecutor's Office. The charges in those cases included criminal mischief, theft and burglary, according to the indictments.
A spokesperson for the prosecutor's office in Hudson County said he was released on pre-trial monitoring, based on the charges and related guidelines from the Criminal Justice Reform Act. Bench warrants were issued for his failure to appear post-indictment.
The NYPD is not looking for any additional suspects, the mayor said.
Notification of next of kin is still pending for the victims, so police are not releasing their names.
The motive for the stabbings is unclear. There were no words exchanged during the attacks and no property was taken, just that the victims were "viciously" stabbed unprovoked, Kenny said.
The investigation is ongoing.
