Man charged with murder following attacks

The suspect, identified by authorities as 51-year-old Ramon Rivera, was arrested Monday after he was found armed with two kitchen knives.

The man was charged with murder in the town fatal beating of three people authorities said Tuesday across New York.

A suspect who authorities say has “serious mental problems” was arrested Monday after he was found with blood on his clothes and armed with two kitchen knives. The NYPD later identified the suspect as Ramon Rivera, 51.

Court records show he pleaded not guilty to three counts of first-degree murder classified as serial murder. He is being held without bail.

Two of the victims killed in the attacks were Angel Lata Landi, 36, a construction worker in Peekskill, New York; and Wilma Augustin, 36, of Manhattan. Police said the third victim was a 67-year-old man, but did not release his name because his family had not yet been notified of his death.

At a news conference Monday, Mayor Eric Adams said the stabbings constituted “unprovoked attacks.”

“The lives of three innocent New Yorkers today are the victims of a terrible, terrible attack” – Adams he said, surrounded by police commanders.

According to New York Police Department data Since around this time last year, criminal assaults have increased by about 5%. However, police data shows that other violent crimes such as murders, burglaries and thefts have fallen.

Nationwide, violent crime has dropped By about 3% in 2022-2023, according to the FBI.

Three people died in a stabbing spree in Manhattan

The rampage, which lasted about 2 1/2 hours across Manhattan, left police “looking for answers as to how something like this could happen,” Adams said.

The first attack occurred at 8:22 a.m. Monday on 19th Street, when police said Rivera stabbed Lata Landi several times in the abdomen at a construction site.

A second attack was reported about two hours later at 10:25 a.m. on 30th Street. The unidentified 67-year-old man was fishing when he was stabbed several times in the stomach.

Both the man and Lata Landi were taken to the same hospital and died a short time later from their injuries.

At 10:55 a.m., Rivera is believed to have carried out his last attack, this time on a woman at the intersection of 42nd Street and 1st Avenue near the United Nations headquarters. Augustin, who was stabbed in the chest and left arm, was transported to a nearby hospital for treatment but later died.

“He just walked up to them and started attacking them with knives,” New York Police Department Chief of Detectives Joe Kenny said during a news conference. “We didn’t exchange any words. No property was taken.”

Kenny said a taxi driver who witnessed the third attack and believed it was a robbery followed the man with the knife and alerted police. When the man, now identified as Rivera, was taken into custody, police said he was wearing bloody clothing and armed with knives.

When USA TODAY contacted the Legal Aid Society, a New York-based nonprofit legal services organization that represents Rivera, on Tuesday, it declined to comment on the case.

New York mayor: Suspect has ‘serious mental problems’

Although Adams said officials are still checking Rivera’s record, he said “there is a real question as to why he was on the street.”

Rivera, who police said appeared to be homeless, has eight arrests on his record and was most recently arrested in October for grand larceny. Adams also added that he has “serious mental problems.”

“This is a clear example of a criminal justice and mental health system that continues to fail New Yorkers,” Adams said.

(This story has been updated to add new information.)

Contributor: Minnah Arshad, USA TODAY

Eric Lagatta discusses the latest news and trends at USA TODAY. Contact him at [email protected]