What to Know
- A hammer-wielding man went on a rampage in Brooklyn, attacking a neighbor in her apartment and then dragging her outside naked
- He left her outside and then started to attack vehicles with the hammer before running into his own second-floor apartment
- Cops took him into custody, having to shock him with a stun gun when he opened the door holding a knife and the hammer, they say
The 68-year-old woman beaten with a hammer, then dragged outside naked by a neighbor who had broken into her apartment in the midst of a broad daylight rampage in Brooklyn last week has died, a police source and a woman who says she is the niece of the victim confirm to News 4.
The woman died Sunday, not long after another family member had said she went into cardiac arrest.
The woman was in her third-floor apartment in Brownsville several days earlier, on Wednesday, when her 32-year-old neighbor broke down the door with a hammer, police said. He hit her repeatedly in the head with the hammer and dragged her down the stairs and outside, where he vandalized several cars, officials say. A woman who told News 4 she was the niece of the victim said the victim had also been stabbed.
The woman had been naked when he broke in, and that's the way he took her outside; a woman who witnessed the chaos said another neighbor came out and covered the victim with a sheet. Her injuries were described as "devastating."
"After the horrifying beating that he gave her he dragged her outside naked and tossed her into the street like she was a piece of trash," the woman who says she is the victim's niece told News 4. "My aunt was taken to Brookdale Hospital and she had two surgeries done on her brain. The skull fragments had entered the brain. Doctors couldn't stop the bleeding in her head."
"My aunt was a sweet, kind, loving woman, she was a bright light ... always smiling, happy, who didn't deserve this one bit," she added. "I'm still in disbelief. I've never experienced this kinda tragedy before. My heart is broken."
After dragging the woman out and vandalizing the cars, the man ran back into his own apartment, a floor below the victim. Police showed up. He was still holding the hammer and also had a knife when he opened the door, they say. Cops shocked the man with a stun gun and took him into custody.
“The guy came out holding a knife. He was holding the hammer. But the officers were able to deploy their Taser and restrain him,” Brooklyn North Assistant Chief Jeffrey Maddrey told News 4 last week.
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The suspect, identified as Ryan Wilson, has no criminal history and neighbors say he struggled with mental issues. Maddrey stressed the NYPD provides each officer with hours of training on how to handle emotionally disturbed people and also equips them with stun guns.
Wilson was officially charged Thursday, a day after the attack, with attempted murder, assault and criminal possession of a weapon. It wasn't clear if the district attorney would upgrade the charges, nor was information on an attorney for Wilson immediately available.
