2 people were killed and 1 was badly injured after a random stabbing spree in Manhattan

The New York City Police Department reports that one woman was "fighting for her life" and two males were killed in three unprovoked stabbings that occurred throughout Manhattan on Monday morning. According to the authorities, a male is in custody.

After the third attack, police reported that a 51-year-old male had been taken into custody.

According to city officials, the suspect has been arrested eight times before, most recently for grand larceny in October 2024.

"Three innocent New Yorkers who [were] going about their lives were the victims of a terrible, terrible assault. Two lost their lives. One is fighting for her life," Mayor Eric Adams said. "It is a clear, clear example of a criminal justice system and a mental health system that continues to fail New Yorkers, and it is troubling that we are standing here today, in a day that brings a great level of difficulty to the city. Three New Yorkers, unprovoked attacks that left us searching for answers on how something like this could happen. We want New Yorkers to know that we are not looking for any additional suspects at this time."

A knife-wielding attacker unexpectedly stabbed a 36-year-old construction worker in the abdomen outside the job site where he was employed just before 8:30 a.m. on West 19th Street near Eighth Avenue, according to Joseph Kenny, the Police Department's chief of detectives, who made the announcement at the press conference.

After being transported to Bellevue Hospital, the construction worker was declared deceased, according to Chief Kenny.

A 68-year-old man who was fishing in the East River at the time was repeatedly stabbed by the assailant approximately two hours later, this time on East 30th Street close to Franklin D. Roosevelt Drive, Chief Kenny said. At Bellevue Hospital, the person was likewise declared dead.

About 30 minutes later, a 36-year-old woman was stabbed multiple times at 42nd Street and First Avenue, close to the United Nations, in the third attack, according to Chief Kenny. In critical condition, she was transported to NewYork Presbyterian-Weill Cornell Medical Center.

According to the police, a taxi driver who thought he had witnessed a robbery pursued the culprit before reporting him to an NYPD officer. Police found two bloody kitchen knives and saw that the suspect was wearing bloody clothes when the officer brought him into custody.

The victims' names won't be made public by the NYPD until their relatives have been informed.