As birds chirped under the morning sun and Upper East Side residents made their way to work Wednesday morning, a dramatic scene played out on an otherwise peaceful block starting just before 9:00 am after a woman was stabbed and slashed inside her UES building in an unprovoked attack, then the suspect barricaded themself inside an apartment after the crime, a witness tells Upper East Site.
“This is insane. I cannot believe this,” said building tenant who knows the victim and was with her as she was treated by paramedics following the attack, “She didn’t deserve this. She almost got killed.”
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The NYPD’s Emergency Services Unit was called in to gain entry inside an UES apartment where the suspect, also a woman, was holed-up armed with a knife, refusing to surrender, police say.
The highly-trained ESU team members behind the wheels of four police interceptors and an NYPD van were seen making precision movements through busy UES intersections, closing the cross streets on Second Avenue with the first vehicle in the motorcade to allow the four following police vehicles to pass, then repeating the process over and over, on each side of the roadway — like something out of a Hollywood movie.
The five police vehicles sailed through the traffic-clogged roadway, from East 85th to 78th Streets, completely in control in under a minute — without going at high speeds — demonstrating the amount of precision training the specialized unit receives.
At the scene, 412 East 78th Street, between First and York Avenues, police officers turned out in a display of force, their heavy duty response trucks crowded the narrow street as officers assembled in tactical gear.
Members of the NYPD’s Hostage Negotiation Team and Technical Assistance Responses Unit were also seen going in and out of the low rise building, some ESU members were seen carrying tools including a electric saw that could be used to cut through a wall, while patrol cops on the outside had their eyes trained on the fourth floor fire escape, in case the suspect tried to make run for it.
The building tenant who spoke with Upper East Site, a retired NYPD officer, explained that the victim — a woman who appeared to be in her mid 20s, who had moved here from France — was slashed and stabbed in an unprovoked attack by another tenant in his building.
“She’s the nicest girl in the entire apartment building,” said the retired cop, “you can’t find a more genuine person.”
The victim hands were sliced up, he said, describing the gashes on her palms as defensive wounds — the type of injuries the former cop had seen during his time patrolling The Bronx.
“She was attacked with a knife by that person,” he told Upper East Site, “She tried to defend herself and she ended up getting cut on both hands.”
After more than a hour and a half into the standoff, just before 10:30 am, NYPD officers finally hauled the suspect out of the building in handcuffs, placing her in an ambulance waiting in front, which was expected to take her to Weill Cornell Medical Center.
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The NYPD was able to confirm one person was taken into custody at the location after a standoff, however, further information, including the suspect’s identity and whether charges had been filed, were not immediately available.
Stunned neighbors passing by the large crime scene lamented the change they’ve seen on the Upper East Side in recent months and the increasing sense of danger they feel in their own neighborhood.
“I’ve lived here my entire life,” said an older woman who lives near Gracie Mansion, the Mayor’s official residence, “What’s going on in the City over the last six months is insane.”
